skill-compiler

Skill Compiler — Solved-to-Skill Automation

Source: Hermes Agent by Nous Research (May 2026) Core Claim: "It's the only agent with a built-in learning loop — it creates skills from experience." Athena Adaptation: Hermes does this via Python (agent/curator.py + tools/skill_usage.py). Athena does it via workflow-level pattern detection + markdown SKILL.md generation.

The Problem This Solves

Athena currently relies on manual insight filing during /end sessions. The [S] and [V] markers in session logs capture learnings, but they remain trapped in session logs — they don't become reusable skills automatically.

Hermes solved this: when the agent completes a novel task, it automatically creates a new skill from the solution, so the same problem class never requires re-derivation.

When to Use

Automatic Trigger (Post-Task Detection)

After any task completion where ALL of the following are true:

1. Novelty: The task required a solution path not covered by any existing skill
2. Complexity: Task took ≥5 agent turns OR involved ≥3 tool calls
3. Success: User confirmed the solution worked (explicit or implicit — no corrections in final 2 turns)
4. Reusability: The solution generalizes beyond this specific instance

Manual Trigger

User says: "compile this into a skill", "save this as a skill", "I want to remember how we did this"

Execution Flow

Phase 1: Pattern Extraction (Analysis)

Perform private analysis in <analysis> tags (not written to files):

<analysis>
1. What was the PROBLEM CLASS? (Not the specific instance)
   - e.g., "Pairs trading dashboard with cointegration analysis"
   - NOT "Dashboard 4-decimal rounding fix"

2. What was the SOLUTION ARCHITECTURE?
   - Key steps in order
   - Tools/APIs used
   - Decision points and their resolution criteria

3. What were the FAILURE MODES encountered?
   - What went wrong initially?
   - What heuristics resolved it?

4. What is the REUSE SURFACE?
   - When would someone encounter this problem class again?
   - What context_trigger keywords would match?

5. OVERLAP CHECK
   - Which existing skills partially cover this?
   - Is this better as a new skill or a subsection of an existing one?
</analysis>