Documentation

Chat Interface

TARS uses a ChatGPT-style dashboard where every task becomes a conversation. This page explains each part of the interface so you can submit tasks, track progress, and find your pull requests with confidence.

Chat Feed

The main area of the dashboard is a scrollable conversation feed. Each task you submit appears as a message bubble on the right side of the screen, just like sending a message. TARS's responses — status updates, summaries, and PR links — appear on the left.

Tasks from all your connected projects appear in a single feed, ordered by the time they were submitted. The project each task belongs to is shown in the message header so you always know which repository is being worked on.

One conversation, all projects. You don't need to switch between project views — the feed shows everything in one place, and the project selector in the input bar lets you target specific repos when you submit.

Status Bubbles

Every task message has a small colored status badge that updates in real time as TARS works. Here is what each status means:

Pending
Task received and waiting in the queue. No worker has picked it up yet.
Assigned
A worker has claimed the task and is cloning your repository to prepare a working environment.
In Progress
TARS is actively writing code. The typing indicator (see below) is visible during this stage.
Reviewing
Code is written and tests have run. TARS is finalizing the branch and opening the pull request on GitHub.
Completed
The pull request is open on GitHub and ready for your review. A PR card appears in the conversation.
Failed
Something went wrong — tests failed, the repo was unreachable, or TARS hit an unrecoverable error. The message includes a brief reason. You can resubmit the task.

Typing Indicator

When a task reaches In Progress status, a typing indicator appears beneath it in the feed — three animated dots, identical to a chat app showing someone composing a reply. This confirms that TARS is actively working on your code right now, not just waiting in line.

The indicator disappears automatically once TARS finishes writing and the status advances to Reviewing or Completed.

No need to refresh. The dashboard polls for status changes automatically. Leave the tab open and TARS will update the conversation as each stage completes.

PR Cards

When a task completes, TARS appends a pull request card directly below the task message in the feed. The card shows:

  • The PR title and number
  • The repository and branch name
  • A direct link to open the PR on GitHub
  • A short summary of what was changed

Click View Pull Request on the card to jump straight to the GitHub PR page where you can review the diff, run CI, and merge.

You always merge manually. TARS never merges its own PRs. The card is an invitation for you to review the code — not an automatic deployment.

Queue Sidebar

The collapsible left panel shows a live view of every task currently queued or in-flight across all your projects. Use it to get a quick read on system load without scrolling through the full chat feed.

Each entry in the sidebar shows:

  • A truncated task description
  • The target project
  • The current status badge
  • How long ago the task was submitted

Clicking any entry in the sidebar jumps the main feed to that task's conversation message.

Input Bar

The input bar at the bottom of the screen is where you submit new tasks. It has three parts:

1

Project selector

The dropdown on the left of the input bar selects which GitHub repository the task targets. It lists all projects you have connected to your account. Select the correct project before submitting — TARS will clone that repo and open the PR there.

2

Task description field

Type your task in plain English. Be specific — describe the feature, bug, or improvement you want. For example: "Add input validation to the signup form so email addresses must be unique" is clearer than "fix signup". The field expands automatically as you type.

3

Submit button & keyboard shortcuts

Click Send or press Enter to submit. To insert a newline in your task description without submitting, press Shift + Enter.

Tasks queue, not cancel. If you submit a second task for the same project while the first is still running, it queues behind the active task. TARS serializes work per project to prevent merge conflicts.

Queue Page

For a full, filterable view of all tasks across all projects, navigate to the Queue page from the main navigation. The queue page shows:

  • Every task ever submitted, with pagination
  • Filter controls by project, status, and date range
  • Exact timestamps for each status transition (submitted, started, completed)
  • The full task description, not just a preview
  • Direct links to the GitHub PR for completed tasks

The queue page is useful for auditing what TARS has done, tracking down a specific task, or reviewing the history of a project.

Bookmark filter URLs. The queue page preserves filter state in the URL, so you can bookmark a filtered view — for example, all failed tasks for a specific project — and return to it directly.

Next Steps

Now that you know how to navigate the dashboard, you might want to:

  • Get started by connecting your first project
  • Review the FAQ for answers to common questions about task results
  • Contact us if something isn't working as expected