Codex CLI Adds Agent Goal Management Feature

AI agents that run for long periods are more likely to fail as tasks progress, losing context such as the original goal, boundaries, and stopping conditions.

Codex CLI 0.128.0 adds the /goal command to address this. This feature manages goals not as simple prompt text, but as persistent state. Users can create, pause, resume, or delete goals through TUI controls.

This state-based goal setting prevents the following problems:

• Task Drift: A phenomenon where the agent becomes fixated on the current error and performs code refactoring or type changes unrelated to the original purpose.
• Loss of Boundaries: Clarifying the scope of work and acceptance criteria to prevent the agent from making unnecessarily large changes.

As a result, /goal increases task stability by providing the agent with clear goals, boundaries, and acceptance criteria.