Why skills exist
Without skills, every agent you build needs the same logic written again: the same email formatting, the same data transformation, the same API integration pattern. Skills let you write logic once and attach it to any agent.Skills vs. tools
| Skills | Tools | |
|---|---|---|
| Contains | Executable code + prompts | API integration spec |
| Reused how | Added to agent in Studio or via GitHub / zip | Selected from the tools library |
| Best for | Multi-step logic, workflows, custom code | Single-action external service calls |
| Format | SKILL.md + code files in a zip or GitHub repo | JSON schema / OpenAPI spec |
Skill format
A skill is a directory (zip file or GitHub repo) with aSKILL.md file at its root. The SKILL.md defines the skill’s interface, parameters, and behavior.