Skip to main content

Quick Mode

Direct execution — no plan file, no approval gate.

Quick mode is the default interaction model. Just describe your task and Pilot gets it done — no spec file, no approval step, no directory scaffolding. Zero overhead on simple tasks. All quality guardrails still apply — hooks, TDD, type checking — but nothing slows down the interaction. When you need a plan, use /spec — not Claude Code's built-in plan mode (Shift+Tab).

$ pilot
> Add a loading spinner to the submit button
> Write tests for the OrderService class
> Explain how the auth middleware works
> Rename the "products" table to "items" across the codebase

Quality Guardrails Active in Quick Mode​

  • Quality hooks — auto-format, lint, type-check on every file edit
  • TDD enforcement — write failing tests before implementation
  • Context preservation across auto-compaction cycles
  • Persistent memory for recalling past decisions and context
  • MCP servers (lib-docs, mem-search, web-search, grep-mcp, web-fetch, codebase-memory-mcp)
  • Language servers — real-time diagnostics and go-to-definition
When to use /spec instead

Use /spec for bug fixes (root cause investigation with test-before-fix), complex features that need a plan before implementation, or refactors with many interdependent changes.