Orchestrating Multiple Agents in VS Code with Ben & Peng

In this episode James sits down with Ben and Peng from the VS Code team to unpack a year of AI evolution inside the editor — from Copilot Free to the new agent sessions UI. They explain the three agent flavors (interactive local, background, cloud), why agent orchestration matters, and how VS Code is reshaping UX so you can run parallel sessions, delegate work, and treat agent outputs like inbox items to triage. Key takeaways: build context in local chats then delegate to background/cloud, harden projects with linting/tests to improve agent reliability, and expect session results to include artifacts beyond code (tests, screenshots, videos). If you want practical tips for embedding agents into your workflow and a peek at where VS Code is headed, this conversation is a must-listen. Links: v1.108 Release Notes: https://code.visualstudio.com/updates... Agents Overview: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/co... Background Agents: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/co... Cloud Agents: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/co... Chapters: 00:00:00 Intro & Team Introductions 00:05:00 Agents History & Evolution 00:10:00 Agent Types: Local, Background, Cloud 00:16:00 UX & Session Management 00:22:30 Testing, Artifacts, and Code Review 00:28:00 Using Sessions Today 00:37:00 Wrap‑up Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3S2fExH... Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/bd5... Castbox: https://castbox.fm/channel/id6720052?... Overcast: https://overcast.fm/itunes1833924784/... Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/itunes/1833924784 and more: https://www.vscodepodcast.com/subscribe Follow VS Code: X: https://x.com/code Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/vscode.dev LinkedIn: https://aka.ms/VSCode/LinkedIn GitHub: https://github.com/microsoft/vscode #vscode #ai #githubcopilot #agents