With Visual Assist 2026.3<\/strong>, we’re continuing to explore that question by introducing a new VA Intelligence function. One that was designed, in true Visual Assist fashion, to augment existing workflows, instead of solving non-existent issues with AI.<\/span><\/p>\n But that’s not all this release. We also added interesting additions such as HLSLI include support and improved macro expansion behavior. Lastly, meaningful performance improvements and stability fixes round out the update.<\/span><\/p>\n Head to our<\/span> downloads page<\/span><\/a> to get the release now.<\/span><\/p>\n The headline of 2026.3 is a new VA Intelligence function: <\/span>Change Code with AI<\/b>. It’s an open-ended, prompt-based feature that lets you describe what you want done to a selected block of code in a conversational manner..<\/span><\/p>\n Here’s the basic workflow:<\/span><\/p>\n The key design choice here is that <\/span>nothing is applied without your review.<\/b> No matter how wild the prompt, you always get a clear before-and-after diff before anything changes in your code. The output is easy to evaluate and easy to reject.<\/span><\/p>\n This is a good moment to address a question that we just got in the mail just before this release: How does adding LLM\/AI features mix with VA\u2019s existing features?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Visual Assist’s core features (navigation, refactoring, code inspection) utilize parsing that follows deterministic rules that make the result predictable. VA Intelligence, by contrast, works best on problems that <\/span>can’t<\/span><\/i> be solved with explicit rules.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This includes open-ended transformations, natural language instructions, tasks where the intent can’t be anticipated in advance. Change Code with AI targets exactly that space.<\/span><\/p>\n This is also why the feature is kept deliberately open. There are no heavy guardrails limiting what you can ask. (Please don\u2019t ask it to refactor your entire codebase\u2014technically, you can do it, but please don\u2019t use it without review!)<\/span><\/p>\n We’re actively gathering feedback on how developers use it \u2014 so take it for a spin and let us know what you find.<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t have VA Intelligence enabled yet? <\/b>Change Code and Explain Code with AI is available through VA Intelligence. If you’ve already set up VA Intelligence, no additional install is needed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It needs explicit permission and is disabled by default. To install VA Intelligence, navigate to <\/span>Extensions ? VAssistX ? VA Intelligence<\/span><\/i> and run the installer.<\/span><\/p>\n *Requires compatible GPU hardware. Learn more about <\/span>setup requirements<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Visual Assist already <\/span>supports HLSL shader development<\/span><\/a>. With 2026.3, that support now extends to <\/span>.hlsli<\/span> files. This is the include file extension commonly used to organize reusable HLSL code, similar to how <\/span>.h<\/span> header files work in C++.<\/span><\/p>\n If you’re working on shader pipelines and referencing your HLSL across include files, VA features like syntax highlighting, navigation, and code completion will now activate properly in those files. No new setup required \u2014 it works the same as <\/span>.hlsl<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n A small but useful quality-of-life addition for users of VA Intelligence: when you use the new Change Code, the diff view now opens directly below the selected text instead of in a separate dialog.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Additionally, the diff view stays in sync with what’s actually selected. Previously, the dialog could fall out of sync if your selection changed mid-session, leading to a confusing mismatch between what was highlighted in the editor and what the diff was showing.<\/span><\/p>\n Users working in Unreal Engine projects with macro expansion enabled will notice a meaningful improvement in responsiveness. An optimization pass was done on macro resolution, removing sluggishness that could affect navigation and hover behavior when working with complex UE macros.<\/span><\/p>\n If you work in Unreal Engine and previously disabled macro expansion due to performance concerns, it’s worth enabling it again and seeing how it performs now. You can find the setting under Visual Assist options.<\/span><\/p>\n Macro expansions added in VA 2025.3<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n Visual Assist’s fuzzy search is used when searching for symbols and file names with Open File in Solution and Find Symbol in Solution. Search results are now more accurate and will better reflect what you’re actually looking for.<\/span><\/p>\n As a reminder, fuzzy search lets you find symbols and files even with approximate queries. Typing <\/span>mcn<\/span> can match <\/span>MyClassName<\/span>, and <\/span>mgv<\/span> can match <\/span>myGlobalVariable<\/span>. It accommodates typos, abbreviations, and partial matches so you don’t have to type exact names to navigate quickly.<\/span><\/p>\n Pasting multiple lines into the C\/C++ Custom Directories list now works as expected, correctly creating separate entries for each pasted path. Previously, multi-line pastes weren’t being split into individual entries cleanly.<\/span><\/p>\n The Custom Directories list is where you can specify additional include directories to help Visual Assist resolve headers that aren’t already part of your project’s include path. This fix makes it easier to add multiple directories in one go.<\/span><\/p>\nChange Code with AI \u2014 New VA Intelligence Function<\/span><\/h2>\n
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\n<\/span>Example: Optimize this, rename these variables, refactor for readability, convert this loop \u2014 the feature is flexible.<\/span><\/li>\n\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wholetomato.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VA-Intelligence-Change-Code-Prompt.png?fit=1606%2C1035&ssl=1\" "\\"VA")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wholetomato.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VA-Intelligence-Change-Code-Diff-View-WIP.png?fit=2438%2C1146&ssl=1\" "\\"VA")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wholetomato.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VA-Intelligence-Change-Code-Diff-View.png?fit=2438%2C1146&ssl=1\" "\\"VA")
HLSLI Include Support<\/span><\/h2>\n
New Diff View Dialog Behavior when using AI<\/span><\/h2>\n
Fixes & Improvements<\/span><\/h2>\n
Significantly Faster Macro Expansion in Unreal Engine<\/span><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Fuzzy Search Accuracy Fix<\/span><\/h3>\n
Improved Paste Behavior in C\/C++ Custom Directories List<\/span><\/h3>\n
Full list of minor fixes and improvements<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Download<\/span><\/h2>\n