GitHub Integration

How to connect GitHub to Brief for codebase analysis and feature detection. Give your AI coding agents ground truth about what's actually built vs. what's planned.

Last updated: January 7, 2026

Brief + GitHub gives your AI coding agents ground truth about your codebase. Instead of AI tools inventing features that already exist or duplicating work, they can query Brief to understand what's actually built—not what's planned or documented.

Without GitHubWith GitHub Connected
AI invents existing featuresAI checks what's already built
No tech stack awarenessAI knows your frameworks
PRs disconnected from decisionsCode linked to product context

GitHub is essential for Brief because it provides the "source of truth" about your product—what exists in code versus what exists only in documentation.

What data does Brief extract from GitHub?

  • Pull Requests — Open, merged, and closed PRs
  • Commits — Commit messages and activity
  • Contributors — Team structure and who's building what
  • Code Patterns — Tech stack, frameworks, dependencies

Why should I connect GitHub to Brief?

Brief + GitHub gives your AI coding agents ground truth about your codebase, tech stack detection, and work cross-referencing.

Current State (Ground Truth)

Brief analyzes your codebase to know what features are actually built vs. what's just planned in Linear or documented in Notion.

Tech Stack Detection

Automatically identifies your frameworks, languages, and technical sophistication.

Work Cross-Reference

When you mention "BRI-123" in a PR title, Brief links that PR to the Linear issue automatically.

How do I set up the GitHub integration?

Setup time: 1-2 minutes
Initial sync: 1-2 minutes
Updates: Real-time via webhooks

Steps

  1. Go to Integrations in Brief
  2. Find GitHub and click Connect
  3. Authorize Brief in GitHub's OAuth flow
  4. Select Organization — Choose which GitHub org to connect
  5. Select Repository — Pick your primary repo (or "All repositories")
  6. Click Complete Setup
  7. Done! Brief starts analyzing your code
GitHub is the only integration with an org/repo selection step. This gives you control over what Brief can access.

What happens after I connect GitHub?

After connecting:

  1. Repository analysis — Brief scans your codebase structure
  2. PR/commit sync — Brief fetches recent activity
  3. Tech stack detection — Brief identifies frameworks and languages
  4. Webhook registration — Brief subscribes to push/PR events

How do I connect multiple repos?

Want to connect more than one repo?

  1. Go back to Integrations
  2. Click Manage next to GitHub
  3. Click Add Repository
  4. Select additional repos

Common Issues

Why can't I see my organization?

You don't have admin access to the GitHub organization. Ask your GitHub org admin to grant you admin permissions, or have them connect GitHub to Brief.

Why aren't any PRs syncing?

Your selected repo may have no PR activity. Check that the correct repository was selected with recent PR activity.

Why isn't cross-referencing working?

Linear ticket IDs aren't in your PR titles. Include ticket IDs in PR titles like: feat(BRI-123): Add authentication. Format: type(TICKET-ID): description

What's Next?

Now that GitHub is connected: