Dellenny explains how GitHub Copilot’s new memory feature allows the AI assistant to remember your coding preferences and history, offering more personalized code suggestions and giving users transparency and control over their stored data.

How GitHub Copilot’s New Memory Feature Changes Your Coding Experience

GitHub Copilot has always acted like an AI pair programmer, helping you write code faster and more efficiently. Recently, Copilot introduced a major update: memory. This enhancement enables Copilot to remember facts and preferences about you, resulting in more tailored code suggestions across sessions and projects.

🧠 What Is Copilot’s Memory?

Copilot’s memory extends beyond immediate context in a single file or repo. It now persistently stores useful data such as:

  • Your name or preferred coding style
  • Favorite frameworks, libraries, and APIs
  • Projects or repositories you often contribute to
  • Naming conventions and recurring coding patterns

This long-term memory makes code completions more personalized and consistent over time.

🔄 Memory vs. Context

While Copilot always leverages your current coding context, that’s short-term — limited to your current file or repository. Memory differs by persisting between sessions, so Copilot evolves with you rather than starting from scratch each time.

⚙️ What Exactly Does Copilot Remember?

Your preferences and coding habits are at the center:

  • If you favor React with TypeScript
  • Naming conventions (snake_case, camelCase, etc.)
  • Whether you prefer async/await patterns
  • Your frequent tool and API choices

All of this is used solely to enhance the relevance of Copilot’s code suggestions.

🧩 Managing Your Copilot Memory

GitHub provides explicit control over Copilot’s memory. You can:

  • View what’s stored in your Copilot memory
  • Delete individual items or clear all saved data
  • Be assured your memory is private and tied only to your GitHub account

To manage memory, visit your Copilot settings on GitHub and find the “Memory” section.

🔐 Privacy and Transparency

GitHub emphasizes transparency and user control:

  • You’ll be notified when Copilot adds new items to memory
  • You can remove items at any time
  • The feature isn’t used for surveillance, just to make Copilot more helpful for you

🚀 Why This Matters for Developers

Persistent memory helps Copilot become a true coding assistant — it adapts to your habits, grows with your project portfolio, and provides suggestions that match your coding style. For frequent users, this means a smoother, more efficient workflow, akin to long-term pair programming with a partner who knows your unique quirks and preferences.

Developers are encouraged to explore these settings, see what Copilot remembers, and take control to ensure their experience is both useful and comfortable.

Author: Dellenny

This post appeared first on “Dellenny’s Blog”. Read the entire article here