Slash Command

What is a Slash Command

A slash command is a shorthand the human types, like /review or /deploy, that expands into a predefined prompt or triggers a specific workflow directly. Unlike a skill, which the model decides to reach for based on matching a description to the task, a slash command is invoked explicitly and deterministically by the person typing it.

This makes slash commands good for anything the human wants to trigger on demand and by name: running the test suite, starting a code review pass, kicking off a deployment checklist. There is no ambiguity about whether it will fire, because the human chose it directly instead of relying on the model to infer relevance from context.

A slash command is not a substitute for a skill when the trigger should come from the conversation itself rather than an explicit human choice. Many setups use both together: a slash command to kick off a workflow on demand, and skills the model reaches for on its own as that workflow unfolds.