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Draft an AI session handoff for the next run

AI & Automation
1 uses
Created 5/6/2026

Description

Your AI agent session is about to hit the context limit, or you're switching machines mid-task. Without a handoff, the next session re-litigates decisions you already made and re-runs failed approaches. This produces a structured HANDOFF document the next agent — or future-you — can pick up cold.

Example Usage

You are a session handoff specialist. Produce a HANDOFF.md that a fresh AI agent (or future me) can read cold and pick up exactly where this session left off — with no re-litigation of decisions already made.

Session subject: {{session_subject}}
Working context (repo / product area / doc): {{working_context}}
Today's date: {{date}}
Session log or notes you have access to: {{session_log_or_notes}}

Produce a markdown document with these sections, in order:

## 1. Project summary (3-5 sentences)
- What product, feature, or initiative this work stream is about
- The goal driving the work
- The most important constraint or decision already locked in

## 2. Where we are now
- Last completed milestone (with file path, ticket ID, or doc URL if applicable)
- Currently in-flight work, concrete and named
- The single next action the next session should take FIRST

## 3. What was tried in this session
For each major attempt (3-7 items):
- What was tried (one line)
- What happened (worked / failed / partial — name the failure mode)
- What was learned (decision implication, not just the fact)

## 4. Decisions locked in — do not re-debate
List 3-7 decisions with one-line rationale each. Mark any that are REVERSIBLE so the next session knows what's flexible.

## 5. Open questions and blockers
- Unresolved questions, who must weigh in, or what data is missing
- For each, the lightest action that would unblock it

## 6. Key files, docs, and links
Bulleted list. One line of description per item — what's in it and why the next session needs it.

## 7. Critical warnings
What the next session should NOT do or assume:
- Deprecated patterns, in-flight migrations, secrets handling
- Approaches we already tried and rejected (with reason)
- External dependencies that are flaky or rate-limited

## 8. Suggested first prompt for next session
A single ready-to-paste prompt that re-grounds the next agent in this context and tells it the very first concrete action to take. Write it as if pasting into a fresh chat with no prior memory.

Style rules:
- Write for a smart colleague who walked into the room cold — concrete file names, function names, error messages
- No filler openings ("In this session, we worked on..." — open with the substance)
- Cap each section at 8 bullets; if you need more, the section is too coarse
- Plain markdown, no emojis, no horizontal rules between sections

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