letta-ai/acquiring-skills
src/skills/builtin/acquiring-skills/SKILL.md
Guide for safely discovering and installing skills from external repositories. Use when a user asks for something where a specialized skill likely exists (browser testing, PDF processing, document generation, etc.) and you want to bootstrap your understanding rather than starting from scratch.
$ install --global
skillsauthnpx skillsauth add letta-ai/letta-code acquiring-skillsInstall this skill globally with one command. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
Security Scan Results
3 of 9 scanners reported clean
Some scanners were skipped, did not run, or reported a non-clean status. Review each row below.
3
Scanners Passed
9
Scanners in report
Clean
TrivyContainer and dependency vulnerability scanner
95%
Clean
SemgrepStatic code analysis for vulnerabilities
95%
Clean
mcp-scan (Snyk)Model Context Protocol security validation
95%
Skipped
Snyk (dep)Open source security scanning
50%
Skipped
Socket.devSupply chain security analysis
50%
Skipped
VirusTotalMulti-engine malware detection
50%
Skipped
CrowdStrikeAdvanced threat intelligence
50%
Skipped
OSV-ScannerOpen Source Vulnerability database check
50%
Skipped
OWASP Dep-Check
50%
Last scanned: Apr 24, 2026, 8:40 PM1.7s1 file scanned
SKILL.md
- name:
- acquiring-skills
- description:
- Guide for safely discovering and installing skills from external repositories. Use when a user asks for something where a specialized skill likely exists (browser testing, PDF processing, document generation, etc.) and you want to bootstrap your understanding rather than starting from scratch.
Acquiring New Skills
This skill teaches you how to safely discover and install skills from external sources.
SAFETY - READ THIS FIRST
Skills can contain:
- Markdown files (.md) - Risk: prompt injection, misleading instructions
- Scripts (Python, TypeScript, Bash) - Risk: malicious code execution
Trusted Sources (no user approval needed for download)
https://github.com/letta-ai/skills- Letta's community skillshttps://github.com/anthropics/skills- Anthropic's official skills
Untrusted Sources (ALWAYS verify with user)
For ANY source other than letta-ai or anthropics:
- Ask the user before downloading
- Explain where the skill comes from
- Get explicit approval
Script Safety
Even for skills from trusted sources, ALWAYS:
- Read and inspect any scripts before executing them
- Understand what the script does
- Be wary of network calls, file operations, or system commands
When to Use This Skill
DO use when:
- User asks for something where a skill likely exists (e.g., "help me test this webapp", "generate a PDF report")
- You think "there's probably a skill that would bootstrap my understanding"
- User explicitly asks about available skills or extending capabilities
DON'T use for:
- General coding tasks you can already handle
- Simple bug fixes or feature implementations
- Tasks where you have sufficient knowledge
Ask Before Searching (Interactive Mode)
If you recognize a task that might have an associated skill, ask the user first:
"This sounds like something where a community skill might help (e.g., webapp testing with Playwright). Would you like me to look for available skills in the Letta or Anthropic repositories? This might take a minute, or I can start coding right away if you prefer."
The user may prefer to start immediately rather than wait for skill discovery.
Only proceed with skill acquisition if the user agrees.
Skill Repositories
| Repository | Description | |------------|-------------| | https://github.com/letta-ai/skills | Community skills for Letta agents | | https://github.com/anthropics/skills | Anthropic's official Agent Skills |
Browse these repositories to discover available skills. Check the README for skill listings.
Installation Locations
| Location | Path | When to Use |
|----------|------|-------------|
| Agent-scoped | ~/.letta/agents/<agent-id>/skills/<skill>/ | Skills for a single agent (default for agent-specific capabilities) |
| Global | ~/.letta/skills/<skill>/ | General-purpose skills useful across projects |
| Project | .skills/<skill>/ | Project-specific skills |
Rule: Default to agent-scoped for changes that should apply only to the current agent. Use project for repo-specific skills. Use global only if all agents should inherit the skill.
How to Download Skills
Skills are directories containing SKILL.md and optionally scripts/, references/, examples/.
Method: Clone to /tmp, then copy
# 1. Clone the repo (shallow)
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/anthropics/skills /tmp/skills-temp
# 2. Copy the skill to your skills directory
# For agent-scoped (recommended default):
cp -r /tmp/skills-temp/skills/webapp-testing ~/.letta/agents/<agent-id>/skills/
# For global:
# cp -r /tmp/skills-temp/skills/webapp-testing ~/.letta/skills/
# For project:
# cp -r /tmp/skills-temp/skills/webapp-testing .skills/
# 3. Cleanup
rm -rf /tmp/skills-temp
Alternative: rsync (preserves permissions)
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/anthropics/skills /tmp/skills-temp
rsync -av /tmp/skills-temp/skills/webapp-testing/ ~/.letta/agents/<agent-id>/skills/webapp-testing/
rm -rf /tmp/skills-temp
Registering New Skills
After downloading a skill, it will be automatically discovered on the next message. Skills are discovered from ~/.letta/skills/, .skills/, and agent-scoped ~/.letta/agents/<agent-id>/skills/ directories.
Complete Example
User asks: "Can you help me test my React app's UI?"
- Recognize opportunity: Browser/webapp testing - likely has a skill
- Ask user: "Would you like me to look for webapp testing skills, or start coding right away?"
- If user agrees, find skill: Check anthropics/skills for webapp-testing
- Download (trusted source):
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/anthropics/skills /tmp/skills-temp cp -r /tmp/skills-temp/skills/webapp-testing ~/.letta/agents/<agent-id>/skills/ rm -rf /tmp/skills-temp - Inspect scripts: Read any .py or .ts files before using them
- Invoke:
Skill(skill: "webapp-testing") - Use: Follow the skill's instructions for the user's task
Related Skills
letta-ai/scheduling-tasks
tools
VerifiedTrustedCommunity
Schedules reminders and recurring tasks via the letta cron CLI. Use when the user asks to be reminded of something, wants periodic messages, or needs to manage scheduled tasks.
2,285SKILL.mdUpdated Apr 15, 2026
letta-ai/src/tools/descriptions
tools
VerifiedTrustedCommunity
# Skill Execute a skill within the main conversation When users ask you to perform tasks, check if any of the available skills match. Skills provide specialized capabilities and domain knowledge. When users reference a "slash command" or "/<something>" (e.g., "/commit", "/review-pr"), they are referring to a skill. Use this tool to invoke it. How to invoke: - Use this tool with the skill name and optional arguments - Examples: - `skill: "pdf"` - invoke the pdf skill - `skill: "commit", a
2,103SKILL.mdUpdated Apr 6, 2026
letta-ai/working-in-parallel
documentation
VerifiedTrustedCommunity
Guide for working in parallel with other agents. Use when another agent is already working in the same directory, or when you need to work on multiple features simultaneously. Covers git worktrees as the recommended approach.
2,103SKILL.mdUpdated Apr 6, 2026
letta-ai/syncing-memory-filesystem
testing
VerifiedTrustedCommunity
Manage git-backed memory repos. Load this skill when working with git-backed agent memory, setting up remote memory repos, resolving sync conflicts, or managing memory via git workflows.
2,103SKILL.mdUpdated Apr 6, 2026