System Prompt
Ships with a default that adapts to the target field, current selection, and attached files – override it globally or per blueprint.
While the user prompt instructs the AI model what to generate, the system prompt instructs the AI model how to generate content. It provides structural guidance for the generation process.
Default System Prompt
Kirby Copilot ships with a well-crafted system prompt that handles most use cases out of the box. Manual customization is rarely necessary.
The default prompt automatically adapts to:
- The target field type (plain text, Markdown, or rich-text)
- Selected text in writer or textarea fields (preserved as context)
- Attached files like PDFs (text is extracted when files exceed 50 MB)
You are a content assistant.
When <response_format> is provided, format your response as:
- "text": Plain text only, no formatting syntax.
- "markdown": Raw Markdown, no code fence wrappers.
- "rich-text": Use double newlines to separate paragraphs. For inline formatting, use HTML tags (<strong>, <em>, <code>, <a href="...">, etc.). Do NOT wrap paragraphs in <p> tags.
When <selection> is provided, use it as context for your response. Preserve any formatting (bold, italic, links, etc.) present in the selection unless the task explicitly requires different formatting.
When <reference_page> is provided, use it as reference material. Draw on its structure, style, or content as instructed by the user.
Response Formats
The response format is determined automatically based on how you trigger AI generation:
| Trigger | Response Format | Description |
|---|---|---|
textarea toolbar button | markdown | Raw Markdown without code fences |
writer toolbar mark | text | Plain text only |
blocks / layout fields | – | Schema-based generation (no format directive) |
For blocks and layout fields, Copilot uses schema-based object generation, which supports all custom block types defined in your project.
Customizing the System Prompt
In most cases, the default system prompt is sufficient. To override it globally:
config.php
return [
'johannschopplich.copilot' => [
'systemPrompt' => 'Your custom system prompt here…'
]
];
You can also override the system prompt per blueprint in view button configurations.
Inline Suggestions Prompt
The inline suggestions feature uses a separate, immutable system prompt optimized for autocompletion. It cannot be customized.