Skills

Skills are packaged domain knowledge that agents consult when working on specific repositories or tasks. They encode project conventions, patterns, and best practices in a format AI agents can follow.

Skills follow the Agent Skills open standard, which works across multiple AI tools including Cursor, Claude Code, Kiro, Windsurf, and many others.

What is a Skill?

A skill is a directory with a SKILL.md file that contains structured instructions about a specific technology, framework, or domain:

skills/backend-nestjs/
├── SKILL.md            # Main instructions (required)
├── references/         # Supporting docs (optional)
└── scripts/            # Helper scripts (optional)

Using Skills

Reference skills per-repo in your hub.yaml:

repos:
  - name: api
    path: ./api
    tech: nestjs
    skills: [backend-nestjs]

  - name: frontend
    path: ./frontend
    tech: nextjs
    skills: [frontend-nextjs]

When an agent works on a repo, it reads the associated skills first. This ensures consistent code quality and adherence to project conventions without manual instruction.

Built-in Skills

Repo Hub ships with several built-in skills:

Skill	Description
`backend-nestjs`	NestJS development patterns, testing, and conventions
`backend-elixir`	Elixir/Phoenix patterns with Ecto and GraphQL
`frontend-nextjs`	Next.js App Router patterns with React and Tailwind
`frontend-react`	Legacy React patterns with styled-components
`database-mysql`	MySQL schema exploration and query patterns
`aws`	AWS infrastructure patterns
`kubernetes`	Kubernetes/EKS operations
`qa-test-planner`	Test planning and QA patterns

Installing from the Community

You can install any skill from any GitHub repository that follows the Agent Skills standard. Browse curated skills in the Directory.

Install a specific skill from a repo

Use the owner/repo/skill-name format to download a single skill via GitHub API — no cloning required:

hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills/react-best-practices
hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills/web-design-guidelines
hub skills add anthropics/skills/frontend-design
hub skills add supabase/agent-skills/supabase-postgres-best-practices
hub skills add obra/superpowers/systematic-debugging

Install all skills from a repo

hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills

List available skills from a remote repo

hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --list

Browse the community directory

hub skills find
hub skills find react

This opens the Repo Hub Directory, a curated collection of verified skills.

Discovering Skills from the Registry

Before installing, you can browse all available skills in the Registry:

hub registry list --type skill

Or search for a specific skill:

hub registry search "nestjs" --type skill
hub registry search "frontend" --type skill

This queries the registry repository and shows each skill’s name and description, so you can decide which ones to install.

Installing from the Registry

Repo Hub maintains its own registry of skills. Install by name:

hub skills add backend-nestjs
hub skills add frontend-nextjs

The registry is the Repo Hub repository itself. You can override it with the HUB_REGISTRY environment variable or the --repo flag:

hub skills add backend-nestjs --repo myorg/my-skills-repo

CLI Commands

`hub skills list`

List installed skills (project and global):

hub skills list

`hub skills add <source>`

Install skills from the registry, GitHub, a git URL, or a local path:

# From the registry (by name)
hub skills add backend-nestjs

# Specific skill from a GitHub repo (downloads only that skill)
hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills/react-best-practices

# All skills from a GitHub repo
hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills

# From git URL
hub skills add git@github.com:company/ai-skills.git

# From a local path
hub skills add ./my-local-skills

# Install globally (shared across all projects)
hub skills add backend-nestjs --global

# List remote skills without installing
hub skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --list

Flag	Description
`-s, --skill <name>`	Install a specific skill only (for repo sources)
`-g, --global`	Install to global `~/.cursor/skills/`
`-r, --repo <repo>`	Override registry repository
`-l, --list`	List available skills without installing

`hub skills find [query]`

Browse curated skills in the Repo Hub directory:

hub skills find
hub skills find react

`hub skills remove <name>`

Remove a skill:

hub skills remove backend-nestjs
hub skills remove backend-nestjs --global

Creating Custom Skills

A skill follows the Agent Skills standard:

---
name: my-skill
description: What this skill does and when to use it
---

# My Skill

## When to Use
Describe the scenarios where this skill should be activated.

## Instructions

### Section 1
Detailed instructions...

### Section 2
More instructions...

## Examples
Code examples showing correct patterns.

Best Practices

Be specific — Include exact patterns, not vague guidelines
Show examples — Real code is better than descriptions
Keep it focused — One skill per technology/domain
Include anti-patterns — Show what to avoid
Stay under 500 lines — Agents work better with concise instructions

Storage

Skills are stored in two locations:

Project skills: skills/ directory in your hub root
Global skills: ~/.cursor/skills/ (shared across all projects)

When hub generate runs:

Cursor: Skills are copied to .cursor/skills/ as directories
Claude Code: Skills are copied to .claude/skills/ as directories (native skills support)

Both editors discover skills automatically from their respective directories.