Persistent default custom agent setting for Copilot CLI startup

[Lee-SiHyeon]

Describe the feature or problem you'd like to solve

Copilot CLI supports changing agents during a session via /agent, and plugin examples/documentation show launching with a specific agent via --agent. However, I have not found a documented way to persist a preferred custom or plugin agent as the default startup agent at user scope.

For users who already have a stable primary custom agent, repeatedly re-selecting that agent at startup adds unnecessary friction. In my case, I want Copilot CLI to start with a custom agent such as oh-my-copilot:atlas every time, without relying on shell aliases or wrapper scripts.

Proposed solution

Please add a persistent user-level setting for the default startup agent, including support for built-in agents and installed custom/plugin agents.

One possible shape (proposal only, not existing functionality):

defaultAgent: oh-my-copilot:atlas

Or an equivalent persisted preference managed by Copilot CLI itself.

This would help by:

• reducing repeated startup steps
• making custom-agent workflows feel first-class
• supporting users who intentionally refine one stable "home" agent for most sessions
• avoiding fragile shell aliases/wrappers as the main workaround

It would also be helpful if the docs explained precedence clearly, for example:
explicit --agent override > saved default agent > standard built-in default

Example prompts or workflows

• I use a custom plugin agent like oh-my-copilot:atlas for most sessions and want copilot to start with it automatically.
• I want to keep a saved default custom agent for daily work, but still override it for a single launch with copilot --agent general-purpose.
• I want a team-standard built-in or custom agent to be the default on startup without asking every user to create shell aliases.

Additional context

Suggested acceptance criteria:

• users can persist a preferred default agent at user scope
• the setting accepts built-in agents and installed custom/plugin agents
• when no explicit --agent is supplied, Copilot CLI starts with the saved default agent
• when --agent is supplied, it overrides the saved default for that launch only
• the chosen default is visible somewhere discoverable, such as config output or startup diagnostics
• if the saved agent is missing, renamed, or unavailable, Copilot CLI fails gracefully and falls back to standard default behavior
• the documentation explicitly covers this behavior with a custom/plugin agent example
• optional but useful: a simple command to set or clear the default without manually editing config

[jstokke]

would love that as well <3