Preface¶

Visual Studio Code released version 1.131 on July 29, 2026. Following last week’s 1.130 infrastructure update focused on Agent Host, Git Worktree, and multi-file diff reviews, this release centers on Agent Observability and Editor Experience: You can now directly see what models running Subagents use, how long they have been running, and which tool they are currently calling in the Agents window. Meanwhile, the built-in experimental dictation and hybrid Markdown editor are also launched, eliminating the need to install the Speech extension separately.

If you are already using Copilot Agents to handle complex tasks or follow the Agent Host Protocol (AHP) session architecture, 1.131 is worth upgrading to as soon as possible.

Subagent Runtime Status: Visible Directly in the Main Session¶

In complex tasks, the main Agent delegates subtasks to Subagents, which run in parallel in their own independent context windows. Previously, to check what a Subagent was doing, you often had to open its independent session and switch back and forth, which disrupted your workflow.

Version 1.131 directly displays three pieces of information for each running Subagent in the main session list of the Agents window:
1. Model being used
2. Elapsed runtime
3. Currently active tool call

Clicking on a running Subagent opens its full conversation in another Chat while keeping the parent session visible — this lets you monitor the overall progress while drilling down into the details of a parallel branch.

This is especially useful for scenarios where “one requirement is split into multiple Subagents that modify code and run tests in parallel”: You no longer have to wait for all subtasks to finish to know where the bottleneck is.

Agent Host and July Update Rhythm¶

Subagent observability is built on the Agent Host architecture that VS Code has continuously invested in. The Agent Host is an independent process that runs harnesses such as Copilot, Claude, and Codex based on the Agent Host Protocol (AHP). The same session can be attached to multiple VS Code windows, and the Copilot-side behavior is aligned with the Copilot CLI and the standalone GitHub Copilot app.

To enable the Agent Host, turn on the setting:

"chat.agentHost.enabled": true

Then select the corresponding Agent from the harness dropdown menu (for example, Copilot).

Version 1.130 (released on July 22) has added several pieces to the Agent infrastructure, forming a continuous narrative with 1.131:
- Git Worktree Isolation: When creating a new session in the Agents window, you can check the Worktree option. Harnesses such as Copilot, Claude, and Codex can all develop in parallel in independent worktrees without polluting the main branch.
- Assisted tool approvals: The model evaluates the risk of tool calls, reducing interruptions from repeatedly clicking “Approve” during long tasks (requires chat.assistedPermissions.enabled).
- Multi-file Diff Review: File-level add/delete statistics, more compact gutters, Quick Chat single-line lists, etc., speeding up code reviews in the Agents window.

Version 1.131 addresses the pain point of “not being able to see what the Subagent is doing” on this basis, moving Agents from “can run” to “can clearly see how they run”.

Built-in Dictation: Universal Across Chat, Editor, and Terminal¶

Version 1.131 introduces Built-in dictation (experimental), no longer relying on the VS Code Speech extension. The core setting:

"dictation.enabled": true

Dictation covers three areas: Chat input box, text editor, and integrated terminal, sharing the same microphone and speech session to avoid simultaneous audio recording and text mixing across multiple places. The transcription uses the local offline Nemotron model, which will be downloaded on first use, and the audio remains local.

Optional enhancements:
- dictation.experimental.llmCleanup: After enabling, Copilot will format the transcribed text and remove filler words (the text will be sent to the language model; if cleanup is unavailable, the original transcription will be retained).
- dictation.showTranscript (Insiders): Controls whether to display a real-time transcription bar during dictation.

Platform support (per official instructions): Windows x64/Arm64, Apple Silicon macOS, Linux x64/Arm64 (glibc ≥ 2.34), Remote workspaces (transcription is executed on the local client). VS Code for the Web, Intel Mac, and some 32-bit/Arm32 systems are not supported for now.

For developers who are used to “dictating requirements and letting Agents write code”, the built-in dictation reduces extension dependencies and unifies the experience across the three input surfaces.

Hybrid Markdown Editor: Edit Documents and Add Annotations in the Agents Window¶

This version also brings Hybrid Markdown editor (experimental) for document collaboration in the Agents window:

"workbench.editor.markdownDefaultEditorInAgentsWindow": true

You can view and edit Markdown in-place in the Agents window, and add executable comments to the Agent — this essentially consolidates “read document — edit document — let the Agent act on the annotations” into the same interface. You can switch between the regular text editor and the hybrid Markdown editor via Reopen Editor With, and this applies to both the Agents window and regular editor windows.

This workflow is more structured than “pasting the full text in a pure Chat” when writing READMEs, design documents, or Agent task descriptions.

Other Notable Changes¶

Python Environments has been fully rolled out as the default environment management experience in both Stable and Insiders channels. Optimizations such as Conda discovery delay and concurrent scan merging speed up project startup (see the 1.131 Languages chapter).
Terminal accessibility: Set terminal.integrated.accessibleViewPreserveCursorPosition to always, so screen reader users can read command output at their own pace during continuous command execution, without being repeatedly interrupted by assertive alerts.
Terminal resize overlay: If you find the row and column overlay displayed when dragging to adjust the terminal size distracting, you can turn it off with terminal.integrated.resizeDimensionsOverlay.enabled: false.

How to Upgrade and Summary¶

Select Check for Updates in VS Code to get version 1.131; you can install the Insiders daily build to try out new features earlier.

The context of 1.131 is clear: Following the intensive updates to Agent Host, Worktree, and review workflows in July, this release adds Subagent runtime visualization, and integrates dictation and Markdown collaboration into the product itself. For developers who use GitHub Copilot Agents daily, the focus of this upgrade is fewer switches and more visibility — you can judge whether parallel Subagents are progressing normally in the main session, and with the built-in dictation and hybrid Markdown editor, the workflow from proposing requirements to editing documents becomes shorter.

Official release notes: Visual Studio Code 1.131, 1.130.

VS Code 1.131: At a Glance of Subagent Running Status, Built-in Voice Input and Hybrid Markdown Editor