karpathy-guidelines SKILL.md skillA
This file is byte-identical to the first copy the registry indexed, one of 4 indexed copies. Same content hash, so the same checks give both the same grade.
karpathy-guidelines from youdotcom-oss/agent-skills is an agent skill: a SKILL.md folder an AI agent loads when a task calls for it.
mdr add youdotcom-oss/agent-skills/karpathy-guidelines@git:20260723.e470633Pins git:20260723.e470633 in mdr.lock. Pin the fingerprint instead.
- Audit grade
- A, 17 of 17 checks passed
- Kind
- SKILL.md skill
- Repository
- youdotcom-oss/agent-skills
- Path
.agents/skills/karpathy-guidelines/SKILL.md- Versions recorded
- 1
- Latest version
- git:20260723.e470633, committed Jul 23, 2026
- Size
- 2,518 bytes
- Repository stars
- 98
- License
- MIT
Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring code to avoid overcomplication, make surgical changes, surface assumptions, and define verifiable success criteria.
Collected from public GitHub. Every version is saved exactly as it was and never changes. Install it at an exact version with the mdr tool, and every file is checked before it reaches your agent. The main file is checked against the SHA-256 fingerprint recorded here, and the others against the fingerprints GitHub keeps for its source commit. The automatic checks below grade the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.
What the file says
# Karpathy Guidelines Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes, derived from [Andrej Karpathy's observations](https://x.com/karpathy/status/2015883857489522876) on LLM coding pitfalls. **Tradeoff:** These guidelines bias toward caution over speed. For trivial tasks, use judgment. ## 1. Think Before Coding **Don't assume. Don't hide confusion. Surface tradeoffs.** Before implementing: - State your assumptions explicitly. If uncertain, ask. - If multiple interpretations exist, present them - don't pick silently. - If a simpler approach exists, say so. Push back when warranted. - If something is unclear, stop. Name what's confusing. Ask. ## 2. Simplicity First **Minimum code that solves the problem. Nothing speculative.** - No features beyond what was asked. - No abstractions for single-use code. - No "flexibility" or "configurability" that wasn't requested. - No error handling for impossible scenarios. - If you write 200 lines and it could be 50, rewrite it. Ask yourself: "Would a senior engineer say this is overcomplicated?" If yes, simplify. ## 3. Surgical Changes **Touch only what you must. Clean up only your own mess.** When editing existing code: …
Read the whole file at its exact version.
How to install
mdr add youdotcom-oss/agent-skills/karpathy-guidelines@sha256:6e22cc54cb02a5e9The line at the top of this page pins the label git:20260723.e470633, which is what most people want. This one pins the sha256 fingerprint of the contents instead, so it survives a label being moved. Either way the exact version is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install downloads and checks those contents again, so it installs them exactly or stops with an error.
[](https://markdownregistry.com/a/art_nclrox257snce4yh)
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Versions
The registry has recorded 1 version of this file, committed on Jul 23, 2026.
Audit of the latest version
- pass: Frontmatter block present
- pass: Frontmatter declares a name
- pass: Frontmatter declares a description
- pass: Size between 200 bytes and 200 KB (2518 bytes)
- pass: No zero-width or bidi control characters
- pass: No instruction hidden inside an HTML comment
- pass: No link to an exfiltration or paste host
- pass: No credential-shaped string
- pass: No instruction to send local credentials anywhere
- pass: No text hidden with inline styles
- pass: No prompt-injection phrasing
- pass: No curl or wget piped into a shell
- pass: No recursive delete of root, home or parent
- pass: No instruction to read or print local credentials
- pass: No base64 blob over 200 characters
- pass: No link to a raw IP address
- pass: No script tag
Source
youdotcom-oss/agent-skills · 98 stars · license MIT · pushed 2026-10-28 · branch main
API
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_nclrox257snce4yh GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=youdotcom-oss/agent-skills/karpathy-guidelines GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/6e22cc54cb02a5e98ae42d06d9d7292db0c1b43894831b32879beb0166b2aea7
Your AI assistant does the legwork. You hear about the deals worth your word. Hand yours the standing instructions at modelranch.com and it joins the network that reads files like this one.
Guides: the SKILL.md format and its required fields · what to check before you install a skill · how to pin a skill to an exact version · where to find agent skills · keeping a team on the same skills · which agent file does what.
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