/warp-delegate

name: warp-delegate
description: >-
  Delegate a coding task to the Warp Agent CLI (`oz`) as a background implementer, then review its
  diff and land it yourself. Use this whenever the user wants to hand implementation work to Warp -
  phrasings like "have Warp implement X", "delegate this to the Warp CLI", "run it through Warp", "use
  oz to implement/fix/refactor" - or wants to run a queue of coding tasks through Warp while staying
  the reviewer. DO NOT USE for tasks small enough to do inline, when the user wants the code written
  directly without delegating, or for the interactive `warp` TUI (this skill drives the headless
  `oz agent run`, not the terminal app).
license: MIT
compatibility: Requires the `oz` CLI (Warp Agent CLI) installed and authenticated (`oz login`, or `WARP_API_KEY` for a headless host; Warp AI features need an eligible Warp plan or your own provider key), Node 18+, and git. The orchestrating agent must be able to run shell commands and read files. Shell examples assume bash/zsh (macOS/Linux, or Git Bash/WSL on Windows).
metadata:
  version: 0.5.0

Warp Delegate

You are the **orchestrator**. Delegate a bounded coding task to a separate **implementer** - the Warp Agent CLI - then review what it produced and land it yourself. You write the brief and own the judgment; the implementer makes changes in its own conversation; you verify and commit.

The loop needs only a shell command and file access, so any comparable orchestrator can drive it.

The binary is `oz`, not `warp`

Warp ships two different programs, and only one of them can be delegated to:

• **`oz`** - the Warp Agent CLI. Headless and scriptable; `oz agent run` executes an agent against a

local directory. **This is what the relay drives.**

• **`warp`** - the interactive Warp TUI. It requires a terminal device, has no prompt or print flag

(its only options are `--resume`, `--auto-approve`, `--api-key`, and the provider-key commands), and exits with `Device not configured` when stdin is a pipe. It cannot be relayed.

If `oz` is missing but `warp` is installed, you have the TUI, not the CLI.

When NOT to use this

• The task is small enough to do inline; delegation overhead is not worth it.
• The `oz` CLI is not installed or authenticated.
• You need a sandboxed or read-only implementer. `oz agent run` has **no sandbox, no permission

mode, and no read-only run** - see [Autonomy and permissions](#autonomy-and-permissions).

• The work must stay off Warp's servers. `oz agent run` uploads an end-of-run workspace snapshot

unless `--no-snapshot` is passed, and conversations live server-side.

Prerequisites (check once)

1. Install the Warp Agent CLI - see <https://docs.warp.dev/cli/>. 2. Authenticate: `oz login`, or set `WARP_API_KEY` for CI, a container, or any headless host. 3. Confirm the account has AI quota. **A working login is not enough** - unlike the other CLIs in this package. `oz whoami` can succeed while every dispatch fails with `In order to use Warp's AI features, subscribe to a Warp plan, or bring your own inference.` Warp records this internally as `QuotaLimit` / "lack of AI quota", so it is a credit condition on the account rather than a CLI-specific entitlement: `oz` runs the same agent harness as the Warp app and draws on the same account, plan, and credits. Check that `oz whoami` names the account holding the plan - if it does not, `oz logout && oz login` fixes it. Otherwise confirm the plan's AI credits are not spent, or store your own provider key - `warp --set-provider-api-key <openai|anthropic|google|grok>`, or `/api-keys` inside the TUI. Bring-your-own-key needs no paid Warp plan. 4. Confirm `oz --version` succeeds and `oz whoami` prints your user. 5. Work in, or point `--cd` at, the target git repository.

On macOS the CLI is distributed as a signed Developer ID binary; a first run may be held by Gatekeeper until it is approved.

Choose the model (optional)

Omit `--model` to use Warp's configured default. To pick another, choose an id from `oz model list` and pass it verbatim. The relay accepts letters, digits, and `. _ : / -` only, so a value cannot be mistaken for another `oz` flag.

The loop

Run these five steps per task. Steps 1, 4, and 5 require judgment; 2 and 3 are mechanical.

1. Write the brief

Warp sees only the text you send plus what it can inspect in the workspace - no chat history or shared context. Include the goal, current state, what to change, what to leave untouched, the project's **actual** gates, and a report contract. Tell it not to commit. Keep one task per brief. The brief is delivered as the `--prompt` value on argv, so it is visible in the host process list - keep secrets out of it and reference workspace files instead. See [references/writing-the-brief.md](references/writing-the-brief.md).

2. Dispatch

Use the bundled relay. It runs `oz agent run --output-format ndjson`, captures the event stream, and writes `result.json`. (`<skill-dir>` is the installed folder containing this `SKILL.md`.)

node "<skill-dir>/scripts/relay.mjs" --brief brief.txt --cd /path/to/repo
# choose a model:                          add --model <id from oz model list>
# use an agent profile:                    add --profile <id>
# label the run:                           add --name <label>
# continue an existing conversation:       add --conversation <id> (delta brief only)
# base the run on a Warp skill:            add --skill <name|repo:name|org/repo:name>
# start MCP servers:                       add --mcp <path-or-inline-json>  (repeatable)
# suppress the workspace snapshot upload:  add --no-snapshot
# hard time limit (watchdog):              add --timeout 2h  (the 30m default suits short runs; implementation briefs routinely need 1-2h)
# see all options:                         node .../relay.mjs --help

The relay pins the workspace with both the child process's cwd and Warp's own `--cwd`. It wri