Anthropic has published an official plugin for its Claude AI designed to automatically refine and simplify code. The "code-simplifier" plugin is described as an autonomous agent focused on improving code clarity, consistency, and maintainability without altering its functionality.

According to its documentation, the plugin acts as an expert specialist that analyzes recently modified code. Its primary goal is to apply project-specific best practices to enhance readability and structure. The plugin emphasizes preserving exact behavior, meaning it will not change what the code does, only how it is written.

How It Operates

The plugin's process is based on several key principles:

1. Preserving Functionality: All original features and outputs must remain intact.
2. Applying Standards: It follows established project coding conventions, which can include preferences for certain syntax patterns, explicit type annotations, and consistent naming.
3. Enhancing Clarity: It aims to reduce unnecessary complexity, eliminate redundant code, improve variable names, and consolidate related logic. The documentation specifically notes it avoids nested ternary operators, preferring more explicit conditional logic.

The tool is designed to operate proactively, refining code immediately after it is written or modified without requiring a direct user request. It primarily focuses on code touched during the current session unless given instructions to review a broader scope.

The "code-simplifier" plugin is now available in Anthropic's official Claude plugins repository.