{
  "id": 6958830,
  "title": "Useful Things Agents Can Do That Are Not Writing Code",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/useful-things-agents-can-do-that-are-not-writing-code",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-12T15:56:54.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Lobsters",
    "slug": "lobsters",
    "url": "https://elijahpotter.dev/articles/useful_things_agents_can_do_that_are_not_writing_code"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In the world of AI coding agents, it's not just about writing code. These agents can be used for a variety of tasks besides programming. There are those who call themselves \"vibe-coders\" when they let an agent handle all the code in an application, but this article aims to explore other uses of AI agents.\n\nOne such use is fixing merge conflicts during pull requests (PRs). These conflicts often involve formatting or boilerplate changes that are not of immediate concern. AI agents, or clankers, can efficiently handle these issues without requiring the user's full attention. This becomes especially useful when working on open-source software, where bug fixing and feature implementation are common activities. To quickly identify relevant issues, users can utilize a specific pi command.\n\nAnother common issue faced by developers is GitHub Actions workflow failures. These failures are usually not due to broken functional code but rather an issue with annotations or missing carriage returns. Such one-line fixes can be easily handled by an AI agent. By providing the agent with the appropriate prompt, developers can quickly get their GitHub Actions runs up and running smoothly.\n\nThe article also touches on the importance of keeping up with news and trends in the tech industry. However, it highlights the need to filter out AI-related content, as it can become overwhelming and repetitive. The author shares a modified version of HackerNews that removes AI-focused articles, providing a more varied reading experience. While it may not always work for everyone, the author believes it is a valuable habit to build.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}