Description
Type: Feature Request
Real-time Chat Input Completion for GitHub Copilot
Feature Request Summary:
Add real-time input completion and suggestion capabilities to GitHub Copilot's chat interface, similar to code completion, to dramatically improve conversation speed and efficiency.
Problem Statement:
Current GitHub Copilot chat interactions are limited by typing speed, especially when asking complex questions or providing detailed context. Users often need to type lengthy prompts, technical terms, or repeat similar questions, which significantly slows down the development workflow and reduces the overall productivity benefits of AI assistance.
Proposed Solution:
Core Features:
-
Real-time Chat Completion
- Provide intelligent text completion as users type in the chat input box
- Suggest complete sentences, technical terms, and common development queries
- Learn from user's previous chat patterns and frequently used phrases
-
Context-Aware Suggestions
- Analyze current workspace context (files, language, framework) to suggest relevant completions
- Offer project-specific terminology and API suggestions
- Adapt suggestions based on current coding task or error context
-
Smart Query Templates
- Pre-populate common development questions with completion suggestions
- Offer template-based completions for typical scenarios:
- "How to implement [API/pattern] in [language/framework]"
- "Debug this error: [auto-detect error from terminal/problems panel]"
- "Explain this code: [auto-reference selected code]"
- "Refactor this function to [common refactoring patterns]"
-
Multi-modal Input Enhancement
- Auto-complete file paths when referencing project files
- Suggest variable/function names from current workspace
- Complete error messages and stack traces from clipboard or problems panel
Advanced Features:
-
Predictive Question Completion
- Anticipate follow-up questions based on previous conversation context
- Suggest natural next steps in development workflow
- Offer completion for iterative refinement of requests
-
Voice-to-Text Integration (Optional)
- Convert speech to text with real-time completion
- Combine voice input with intelligent text completion
- Support for technical pronunciation and terminology
-
Collaborative Completion
- Learn from team's common queries and patterns (privacy-controlled)
- Share completion suggestions for project-specific terminology
- Adapt to team's coding standards and practices
User Experience Enhancements:
- Instant Suggestions: Sub-100ms completion response time
- Keyboard Shortcuts: Tab to accept, Ctrl+Space to trigger, arrow keys to navigate
- Visual Indicators: Clear distinction between user input and suggestions
- Customizable Behavior: Adjustable completion aggressiveness and suggestion types
Use Cases:
- Rapid Prototyping: Quickly ask about implementation patterns without typing full sentences
- Debugging Sessions: Fast input of error descriptions and troubleshooting queries
- Code Review: Efficient questions about code quality and best practices
- Learning: Quick access to educational queries and explanations
- Documentation: Fast generation of documentation-related questions
Technical Implementation:
- Utilize lightweight language models for real-time completion
- Implement client-side caching for common completions
- Integrate with existing VS Code IntelliSense infrastructure
- Ensure minimal latency impact on chat responsiveness
Expected Benefits:
- 3-5x faster chat input speed for complex queries
- Reduced cognitive load when formulating questions
- More natural and fluid AI interaction experience
- Increased frequency of Copilot usage due to improved UX
- Better utilization of development time
Privacy Considerations:
- Local completion caching with opt-out options
- Transparent data usage for completion learning
- User control over personalization features
- Secure handling of sensitive project information
VS Code version: Code - Insiders 1.102.0-insider (0140ab3, 2025-06-18T05:04:01.892Z)
OS version: Windows_NT x64 10.0.26100
Modes: