How to Use Devin

Introduction

Devin is an AI software engineer that can help you build, debug, and deploy code. Our team interacts with Devin exclusively through Slack, where you can assign tasks and monitor progress in real-time.

Official Documentation: docs.devin.ai

Procedures

Common Slack Commands

Starting a Task

Simply mention Devin in #ask-api-docs with your request:

@Devin Please add a redirect from this URL https://www.assemblyai.com/docs/speech-to-text/custom-vocabulary to this URL https://www.assemblyai.com/docs/pre-recorded-audio/improving-transcript-results-with-keyterms-prompting

@Devin change the Python SDK code on https://www.assemblyai.com/docs/speech-to-text/custom-vocabulary to this: ...

@Devin comment out the callout on https://www.assemblyai.com/docs/speech-understanding/speaker-identification under the Example Transformation heading.

Other keywords

Keyword	Function
!ask	Begin your message with !ask to get a quick codebase answer without starting a full agent
!deep	Get a deeper research answer using advanced search
mute	Prevents Devin from seeing further Slack messages in thread
unmute	Reverses the above
(aside), !aside	Causes Devin to ignore the message (useful for commenting on Devin’s run directly in-thread)
sleep	Puts Devin to sleep; to wake Devin up, send any message in the thread
archive	Puts Devin to sleep + archives the session
EXIT	Ends the session
![macro_name]	Attach a playbook to a Session by referencing its Macro name

Managing Threads

Mute a thread Use mute to prevent Devin from seeing further Slack messages in thread:

mute

Use aside for clarifications Use aside to ask Devin questions or give instructions without adding them to the main task context:

aside what's the status of this task?

aside can you explain your approach?

This prevents cluttering Devin’s context with meta-conversations.

Prompt Engineering Tips

Be specific and clear

• ❌ “Fix the bugs”
• ✅ “Fix the TypeScript errors in src/components/UserProfile.tsx”

Provide context

• Mention the tech stack: “Using Next.js 14 and TypeScript…”
• Link to relevant docs or examples
• Specify requirements: “Must maintain backwards compatibility”

Break down complex tasks

• Instead of: “Build a complete authentication system”
• Try: “Implement JWT token generation in the auth service” → then → “Add login endpoint with JWT validation”

Reference files and locations

• “Update the authentication logic in src/lib/auth.ts”
• “Add error handling to the API route at app/api/users/route.ts”

Ask Devin to explain its approach

• “Show me your plan before implementing”
• “Explain how you’ll approach this task”
• This helps catch misunderstandings early

Resources

Documentation

• Devin Documentation
• Devin Slack Integration Guide

Internal Resources

• #ask-api-docs Slack channel for tips and questions

Appendices

Example Workflows

Feature Development

@Devin Review the requirements in PRD-123, then create a plan
for implementing the user notification feature

[Review plan, then:]

Looks good, proceed with implementation

[After implementation:]

Write tests for this feature and create a PR

Bug Investigation

@Devin Reproduce the issue described in TICKET-456 and identify
the root cause

[Review findings:]

aside Can you explain why that's causing the issue?

[After explanation:]

Implement a fix and add a regression test

Quick Tips

• Use threads: Keep related work in the same thread for context
• Monitor progress: Check in periodically, especially for complex tasks
• Iterate: Devin can refine its work based on your feedback
• Save time: Let Devin search docs, run tests, and handle repetitive tasks

Conclusion

Devin works best when given clear, specific instructions with appropriate context. Use mute to manage notifications and aside to keep meta-conversations separate from task context. Treat Devin as a collaborative team member—review its work and provide feedback to get the best results.