Explain & Test

Explain code

php artisan ai:explain reads a file or class and explains what it does in plain English — inputs, outputs, side effects, and any non-obvious behaviour. The agent reads the full file and any closely-related classes before responding.

# Explain a whole file
php artisan ai:explain app/Services/BillingService.php

# Focus on a specific method
php artisan ai:explain app/Services/BillingService.php --method=charge

Generate tests

php artisan ai:test reads a class, checks your existing test conventions, and writes a Pest test file covering the happy path, edge cases, and error conditions. It runs the tests after writing to confirm they pass.

# Generate tests for a class
php artisan ai:test app/Services/BillingService.php

# Focus on a single method
php artisan ai:test app/Services/BillingService.php --method=charge

# Force a feature or unit test
php artisan ai:test app/Http/Controllers/UserController.php --feature
php artisan ai:test app/Services/BillingService.php --unit

Test type is inferred from the path when no flag is given — controllers, jobs, commands, listeners, and middleware default to Feature; everything else defaults to Unit.

Inside a coding session

The main agent can also delegate test writing to the test-writersubagent mid-session, keeping the main conversation focused.