Conductor Pattern — Parallel AI Agent Execution (conductor)

Keyword: conductor

Run Claude + Codex + Gemini simultaneously on the same feature. Each agent works in an isolated git worktree branch. PRs are created per agent for comparison — cherry-pick the best of each.

When to use this skill

You want multiple AI agents to independently implement the same spec and compare results
You want to reduce risk on a high-stakes refactor (if one agent fails, others succeed)
You want parallel role separation: Claude for domain logic, Codex for tests/types, Gemini for docs
You want CLI-based pipeline automation: check → agents → PR creation

Architecture

repo-root/
  .git/                    # Shared git history
  src/ ...
  trees/                   # Per-agent worktrees (no conflicts)
    feat-x-claude/         # Claude sandbox
    feat-x-codex/          # Codex sandbox
    feat-x-gemini/         # Gemini sandbox (optional)
  scripts/
    conductor.sh           # Main orchestrator
    conductor-pr.sh        # Auto PR creation
    pipeline.sh            # Unified pipeline runner
    pipeline-check.sh      # Pre-flight checks
    lib/hooks.sh           # Hook system

Quick Start

# Pre-flight check
bash scripts/pipeline-check.sh

# Run parallel agents (Claude + Codex by default)
bash scripts/conductor.sh my-feature main

# Run with 3 agents
bash scripts/conductor.sh my-feature main claude,codex,gemini

# Unified pipeline (check → agents → PR)
bash scripts/pipeline.sh my-feature --stages check,conductor,pr

Step 1: Pre-flight Check

bash scripts/pipeline-check.sh
# Verifies: git, tmux, gh, jq, agent CLIs installed

Step 2: Run Conductor

bash scripts/conductor.sh <feature-name> [base-branch] [agents]

What it does:

Creates trees/feat-<name>-<agent> worktrees
Creates isolated branches from base branch
Copies .env and common config files
Launches tmux sessions for each agent simultaneously
Each agent works independently (no conflicts)

Flags:

Flag	Description
`--no-attach`	Don't attach to tmux session (for CI/non-interactive)
`--skip-hooks`	Skip all pre/post hooks

Step 3: Review in tmux

# Attach to tmux session
tmux attach-session -t conductor-<feature>

# Switch between agent panes
Ctrl+b, n  # Next pane

Step 4: Auto-create PRs

bash scripts/conductor-pr.sh <feature-name> [base-branch]

Creates a PR per agent worktree. Commits any uncommitted changes automatically.

Step 5: Compare & Merge Best

# List agent PRs
gh pr list --search "feat: <feature>"

# Create best-of-both branch
git checkout -b feat/<feature>-best main
git cherry-pick <claude-commit>   # UI structure
git cherry-pick <codex-commit>    # Tests/types
gh pr create -B main -H feat/<feature>-best

Pipeline Mode

Run all stages in sequence:

bash scripts/pipeline.sh my-feature \
  --base main \
  --agents claude,codex \
  --stages check,conductor,pr

Stages: check → plan → conductor → pr → copilot

Pipeline flags:

Flag	Description
`--base <branch>`	Base branch (default: main)
`--agents <list>`	Agent list (default: claude,codex)
`--stages <list>`	Stages to run
`--resume`	Resume from last failed stage
`--no-attach`	No tmux attach
`--dry-run`	Print stages without executing
`--skip-hooks`	Skip all hooks

Hook System

Pre/post hooks run at each stage. Create scripts in scripts/hooks/:

Hook	Trigger	Behavior on failure
`pre-conductor.sh`	Before agent start	Abort if non-zero
`post-conductor.sh`	After agents complete	Warn only
`pre-pr.sh`	Before PR creation	Abort if non-zero
`post-pr.sh`	After each PR created	Warn only

# Skip all hooks
CONDUCTOR_SKIP_HOOKS=1 bash scripts/conductor.sh my-feature

# Custom hooks directory
CONDUCTOR_HOOKS_DIR=/path/to/hooks bash scripts/conductor.sh my-feature

Use Cases

Scenario	Agent Config	Merge Strategy
UI redesign	Claude (UI) + Codex (styling)	UI: Claude, style: Codex
API dev	Claude (business logic) + Codex (types/tests)	Logic: Claude, tests: Codex
Risk hedging	Claude + Codex (same spec)	Use successful version
Documentation	Gemini (docs) + Claude (examples)	Docs: Gemini, examples: Claude

Cleanup

git worktree list
git worktree remove trees/feat-<feature>-claude
git worktree remove trees/feat-<feature>-codex
git branch -d feat/<feature>-claude feat/<feature>-codex

conductor-pattern