This guide shows you how to add the ai-prepare-commit-msg hook to your repository. Choose the method that fits your workflow.

Prerequisites

• You have a Git repository.
• You can run git commands from your shell.
• For the pre-commit method, you have pre-commit installed.

Install with pre-commit (recommended)

Add the repository to your .pre-commit-config.yaml. Pin rev to a released tag, such as v7.0.1. See the releases page for the latest version.

default_install_hook_types:
  - pre-commit
  - prepare-commit-msg
repos:
  - repo: https://github.com/electrocucaracha/ai-prepare-commit-msg
    rev: v7.0.1
    hooks:
      - id: ai-prepare-commit
        stages:
          - prepare-commit-msg

The hook works alongside other pre-commit hooks in the same config. Only the prepare-commit-msg stage is required for ai-prepare-commit.

default_install_hook_types tells pre-commit which Git hooks to wire up. Install them with:

uvx pre-commit install

If your config omits default_install_hook_types, install the prepare-commit-msg hook explicitly:

uvx pre-commit install --hook-type prepare-commit-msg

Configure a model

The hook requires a configured LiteLLM model. For GitHub Copilot, export:

export LITELLM_PROXY_MODEL=github_copilot/gpt-4

See the Configuration reference for other providers and required API keys.

Verify installation

Run a test commit in a repository with staged changes. When your editor opens, you should see a generated commit message draft, followed by a [Y/n] prompt in your terminal to accept it.

If you commit from an environment without a controlling terminal, such as CI or a script, the confirmation prompt has no terminal to read from and the commit fails. Set AI_PREPARE_COMMIT_AUTO_APPROVE=1 in that environment to skip the prompt and write the message directly. See the Configuration reference.

Related

• Configuration reference
• Guides index