Amazon Q CLI includes experimental features that can be toggled on/off using the /experiment command. These features are in active development and may change or be removed at any time.
Description: Enables session-scoped checkpoints for tracking file changes using Git CLI commands
Features:
- Snapshots file changes into a shadow bare git repo
- List, expand, diff, and restore to any checkpoint
- Conversation history unwinds when restoring checkpoints
- Auto-enables in git repositories (ephemeral, cleaned on session end)
- Manual initialization available for non-git directories
Usage:
/checkpoint init # Manually enable checkpoints (if not in git repo)
/checkpoint list [--limit N] # Show turn-level checkpoints with file stats
/checkpoint expand <tag> # Show tool-level checkpoints under a turn
/checkpoint diff <tag1> [tag2|HEAD] # Compare checkpoints or with current state
/checkpoint restore [<tag>] [--hard] # Restore to checkpoint (interactive picker if no tag)
/checkpoint clean # Delete session shadow repo
Restore Options:
- Default: Revert tracked changes & deletions; keep files created after checkpoint
--hard: Make workspace exactly match checkpoint; deletes tracked files created after it
Example:
/checkpoint list
[0] 2025-09-18 14:00:00 - Initial checkpoint
[1] 2025-09-18 14:05:31 - add two_sum.py (+1 file)
[2] 2025-09-18 14:07:10 - add tests (modified 1)
/checkpoint expand 2
[2] 2025-09-18 14:07:10 - add tests
└─ [2.1] fs_write: Add minimal test cases to two_sum.py (modified 1)
Description: Shows context window usage as a percentage in the chat prompt
Features:
- Displays percentage of context window used in prompt (e.g., "[rust-agent] 6% >")
- Color-coded indicators:
- Green: <50% usage
- Yellow: 50-89% usage
- Red: 90-100% usage
- Helps monitor context window consumption
- Disabled by default
When enabled: The chat prompt will show your current context usage percentage with color coding to help you understand how much of the available context window is being used.
Command: /knowledge
Description: Enables persistent context storage and retrieval across chat sessions
Features:
- Store and search through files, directories, and text content
- Semantic search capabilities for better context retrieval
- Persistent knowledge base across chat sessions
- Add/remove/search knowledge contexts
Usage:
/knowledge add <path> # Add files or directories to knowledge base
/knowledge show # Display knowledge base contents
/knowledge remove <path> # Remove knowledge base entry by path
/knowledge update <path> # Update a file or directory in knowledge base
/knowledge clear # Remove all knowledge base entries
/knowledge status # Show background operation status
/knowledge cancel # Cancel background operation
Description: Enables complex reasoning with step-by-step thought processes
Features:
- Shows AI reasoning process for complex problems
- Helps understand how conclusions are reached
- Useful for debugging and learning
- Transparent decision-making process
When enabled: The AI will show its thinking process when working through complex problems or multi-step reasoning.
Command: /tangent
Description: Enables conversation checkpointing for exploring tangential topics
Features:
- Create conversation checkpoints to explore side topics
- Return to the main conversation thread at any time
- Preserve conversation context while branching off
- Keyboard shortcut support (default: Ctrl+T)
Usage:
/tangent # Toggle tangent mode on/off
Settings:
chat.enableTangentMode- Enable/disable tangent mode feature (boolean)chat.tangentModeKey- Keyboard shortcut key (single character, default: 't')introspect.tangentMode- Auto-enter tangent mode for introspect questions (boolean)
When enabled: Use /tangent or the keyboard shortcut to create a checkpoint and explore tangential topics. Use the same command to return to your main conversation.
Description: Launch and manage asynchronous task processes. Enables running Q chat sessions with specific agents in parallel to the main conversation. Usage: Use natural language to ask the model to launch a background task. Once the task is ready, you can then ask the model to check on the result Agent Approval Flow: When enabled: Tasks with agents require explicit approval and show agent details. Tasks without agents run with a warning about trust-all permissions. Once delegated, tasks work independently and you can check progress, read results, or delete them as needed.
Tool name: todo_list
Command: /todos
Description: Enables Q to create and modify TODO lists using the todo_list tool and the user to view and manage existing TODO lists using /todos.
Features:
- Q will automatically make TODO lists when appropriate or when asked
- View, manage, and delete TODOs using
/todos - Resume existing TODO lists stored in
.amazonq/cli-todo-lists
Usage:
/todos clear-finished # Delete completed TODOs in your working directory
/todos resume # Select and resume an existing TODO list
/todos view # Select and view and existing TODO list
/todos delete # Select and delete an existing TODO list
Settings:
chat.enableTodoList- Enable/disable TODO list functionality (boolean)
Use the /experiment command to toggle experimental features:
/experiment
This will show an interactive menu where you can:
- See current status of each experiment (ON/OFF)
- Toggle experiments by selecting them
- View descriptions of what each experiment does
These features are provided to gather feedback and test new capabilities. Please report any issues or feedback through the /issue command.
All experimental commands are available in the fuzzy search (Ctrl+S):
/experiment- Manage experimental features/knowledge- Knowledge base commands (when enabled)/todos- User-controlled TODO list commands (when enabled)
Experiments are stored as settings and persist across sessions:
EnabledCheckpointing- Checkpointing experiment stateEnabledContextUsagePercentage- Context usage percentage experiment stateEnabledKnowledge- Knowledge experiment stateEnabledThinking- Thinking experiment stateEnabledTodoList- TODO list experiment state
You can also manage these through the settings system if needed.