Simon Willison's commit-rewriter provides a web interface for editing Git commit messages before publication. He built it after coding-AI agentAn AI system that doesn't just answer once but works toward a goal in a loop — taking actions, reading the results, and deciding what to do next.Full definition → text and private issue references appeared in the initial commits for the Datasette security releases. The release announcement describes a way to revise that history deliberately.
Submitting edits first creates a timestamped branch preserving the repository's current state. The tool then rewrites every commit from the earliest edited message through the latest commit. That scope matters: changing an older message affects the subsequent history, while the saved branch provides a route back.
Terms in this piece · Glossary
AI agent — An AI system that doesn't just answer once but works toward a goal in a loop — taking actions, reading the results, and deciding what to do next.
