One Copilot, Multiple Tools: Upgrade Your Workflow with AI Integration
Published: 2023-09-20 19:50:55

We're thrilled to announce that [Pieces Copilot](https://code.pieces.app/blog/introducing-pieces-copilot) is now embedded in most of our popular integrations, including Visual Studio Code, JetBrains IntelliJ, Obsidian, and JupyterLab. With our recent advancements in AI integration, we're not just extending the capabilities of your favorite tools; we're transforming them into interconnected parts of a unified, intelligent development ecosystem.

## The Latest Pieces Copilot Features

Our goal is to accelerate problem-solving make your workflow as efficient as possible, and these integrated AI features designed to do just that:

### Local Large Language Models (LLLMs)

With the power of local language models, you can get smart, context-aware assistance, even when you're offline. From generating code snippets to solving complex problems, LLLMs empower developers with privacy, security and convenience whenever they want to code. Choose from 4 different local LLMs or 2 different cloud LLMs to operate your copilot, based on your preference and needs. [See which LLMs we offer now in our documentation](https://docs.pieces.app/features/pieces-copilot).

### ‘Ask Copilot About’

Forget the days of waiting for a senior developer to free up time and answer your pressing questions. With the "Ask Copilot About" feature, you have a knowledgeable assistant right at your fingertips. Just right-click on any file, folder, or code snippet in your environment to get detailed insights, instantly.

<figure><img src="https://d37oebn0w9ir6a.cloudfront.net/account_32099/pieces-for-developers-jetbrains-global-copilot-macos-16x9-9-20-2023_017fb8a9eb96aa6bdc78ef3c57a748ce.gif" alt="Chatting with the Pieces Copilot in VS Code."/></figure>

Whether you're trying to understand a specific algorithm or familiarize yourself with an entire codebase, you can do so without the need for excessive manual research or consultation. It's like having an expert by your side, 24/7, empowering you to become more self-sufficient and informed in your development journey.

### Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG)

[Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)](https://code.pieces.app/blog/retrieval-augmented-generation-for-curation) technology makes your Pieces Copilot remarkably context-aware. It analyzes your entire workflow—spanning from your plugin interactions to your desktop app activities—to generate code snippets that are both useful and relevant.

With generative AI integration across your workflow, you can experience intelligent AI conversations that continuously re-ground your personal copilot, creating better responses with each save, message, copy-paste, and snippet reference throughout your work-in-progress journey.

### Multimodal Interactions

Say goodbye to the limitations of text-only queries. Pieces Copilot takes interaction to the next level by supporting multimodal inputs. Whether you want to upload an image of code, a snippet from a file, or even an entire folder for context, Pieces Copilot is designed to understand and assist. And stay tuned, because we'll soon be rolling out the capability to include video inputs, making your copilot conversations even more natural.

### Set Custom Context

Gain unparalleled accuracy in your interactions with Pieces Copilot by setting custom contexts for each conversation. Whether you're working with URLs, files, folders, code snippets, or images, specifying the context allows you to receive hyper-relevant results. Imagine asking Pieces Copilot about a specific Python error while setting the context to a GitHub repository URL—your assistance becomes as tailored as it can get, making your development process smoother and more efficient.

## Benefits of Copilot Integration for Your Workflow and Productivity

The primary goal of integrating Pieces Copilot into these platforms is to boost your productivity and make you more effective as a developer. Here's how:

- **Reduce** [Context Switching](https://code.pieces.app/blog/minimizing-the-cost-of-context-switching-for-developers): Stop the endless toggling between different apps or browser tabs. With the conversational AI integration of Pieces Copilot, you can ask questions, generate code, and access information without ever leaving your development environment.
- **Generate Better Code**: Context-aware code generation means you're not just getting code that works—you're getting code that aligns with best practices, is optimized for performance, and fits seamlessly into your existing codebase.
- **Stay Organized**: From managing code snippets to annotating project notes, keep all your essential workflow elements neatly organized and easily accessible, right where you need them.
- **Collaborate Effortlessly**: Soon, you'll be able to ask Pieces Copilot "who" within your organization is best to consult about a specific file, folder, or code snippet. With human and AI integration, you can say goodbye to guesswork and directly reach out to the right teammate for the job.
- **Centralize Your Workflow Materials**: [Our plugins](https://code.pieces.app/plugins), coupled with Pieces Copilot, make it incredibly simple to save, search, share, and reuse resources. Create a centralized repository for all your workflow materials that your entire team can benefit from.
- **Streamline Refactoring**: Simplify the complex task of refactoring code with the "Ask Copilot About" feature. By offering you an instant understanding of an entire codebase, it enables you to easily identify issues, dependencies, and patterns. This speeds up the decision-making process, allowing you to make more informed choices when refactoring, all without the typical manual research or timely consultations.


## AI Integration Examples and Use Cases

### VS Code

VS Code is our most popular integration yet, and as such it comes packed with extremely useful Copilot features. One of our favorites being the set of ‘ask copilot about’ features. No more needing to context switch by copying and pasting your code into ChatGPT in the browser, simply highlight some of your code (or a file in the explorer!), right click, and select the ‘ask copilot about’ item to initialize a copilot conversation with your own custom context. This increases your development velocity and generally makes interacting with AI chatbots a smoother process.

### Obsidian

One of our more recently released integrations, first hitting production in June of this year is also coming with the Local LLM runtimes. Data privacy is absolutely critical to the Obsidian community and as such they typically do not want their vault contents commingling with large company’s training data sets. With Pieces Copilot, Obsidian users can interact with a chatbot contextualized by their vault without ever needing their notes to leave their device. This is all possible due to Pieces’ commitment to developing on-device, air gapped AI features and our most recent local LLM release.

### JupyterLab

JupyterLab is also one of our more recently released integrations, which followed soon after the release of the Obsidian plugin. One useful feature that is contained within the JupyterLab extension (and all the above integrations) is the ability to \`enrich\` your code in place. In order to use this feature, simply select some code, right click, and select the ‘Enrich your selection via Pieces’ option in order to automatically generate and insert some useful context into your code.

<figure><img src="https://d37oebn0w9ir6a.cloudfront.net/account_32099/pieces-for-developers-jupyter-transform-readability-macos-16x9-9-20-2023_4aea229f240fbb036506b37a17d887b0.gif" alt="Using Pieces for JupyterLab."/></figure>

## Why You Should Take Advantage of AI Chatbot Integration with the Pieces Ecosystem

When it comes to boosting productivity and streamlining your workflow, every tool matters. While Pieces Copilot adds incredible value for software developers used solely on [our desktop application](https://docs.pieces.app/installation-getting-started/what-am-i-installing), integrating it with multiple development tools you already have brings compounding benefits throughout your day-to-day tasks.

### The Compounding Intelligence of Copilot Integrations

With the desktop application, you're not just adding another tool; you're centralizing your entire development workspace. Every interaction you have across all plugins and the desktop app serves to make your copilot more intelligent, resulting in hyper-contextual assistance and code generation that understands your specific needs.

Plus, it’s simply a great place to save code since every snippet you save - whether from the IDE, browser, or collaboration tool - is automatically enriched with titles, annotations, tags, related links, related people and other metadata.

### Browser Extensions: The Next Stop on our Roadmap

We're not stopping there. Pieces Copilot is coming soon to your browser extensions! Soon you'll be able to ask your copilot about code snippets or problems you encounter during your research, without even leaving your browser. With the integration of AI into your browser, the internet becomes your playground, as you seamlessly blend problem-solving and development into a single, unified workflow.

## How to Integrate AI Into your Business

Part of a larger team? By expanding your suite of plugins and downloading the Pieces for Developers desktop application, you’re not just investing in tools—you’re investing in a more efficient, unified, and, ultimately, more enjoyable development process.

Pieces offers modern [enterprise AI solutions](https://code.pieces.app/blog/modern-enterprise-ai-solutions-for-software-development) for better communication, security, and efficiency in software development. Here are some of the benefits of using Pieces for AI business integration in your organization:

- **Clear Communication**: Our [Microsoft Teams](https://docs.pieces.app/extensions-plugins/teams) AI integration, along with soon-to-launch plugins for Slack and Google Chat, streamline conversations and bring you closer to your colleagues.
- **Robust Security**: On-device and air-gapped security models protect your data, while bringing the power of artificial intelligence into your toolkit.
- **Maximized Efficiency**: Our AI integration platform brings you closer to your tools and adapts to your needs, saving time and costs.
- **Cost-Savings**: Automation and streamlined communication reduce project expenses.
- **Cohesion & Innovation**: More than [features](https://pieces.app/features), we offer a strategy that fosters team unity and speeds up innovation.
- **AI-Led Insights**: The Pieces Copilot learns from you, offering personalized project insights.


So why settle for less? Install our AI integrations for business productivity free and experience [the future of AI tools](https://code.pieces.app/blog/future-ai-tools-going-from-unknown-to-unstoppable) today.

## Conclusion

We're transforming the coding landscape with Pieces Copilot—now available as a modern AI integration with your favorite development tools. The goal is simple: smarter, more secure, more efficient coding. As we plan to expand into browser extensions, your feedback is invaluable - [join our Discord](https://discord.gg/getpieces) and let us know what you think! Upgrade your dev environment with more plugins and the desktop app to experience Pieces Copilot's full potential.