---
title: Your First Task
slug: cloud/run-your-first-task
subtitle: Run a browser automation from start to finish
---

Let's run a real automation. You'll tell Skyvern to visit a website, extract data, and return it as JSON. Then watch the entire thing happen live.

## Step 1: Write your prompt

Open [app.skyvern.com](https://app.skyvern.com) and you'll land on the **Discover** page.

<img src="/images/cloud/skyvern-cloud-discover.png" alt="Discover page with a prompt entered" />

The Discover page has a single input field. Type your instructions and include the target URL in the same prompt. For this example, enter:

```
Get the title of the #1 post on the front page for https://news.ycombinator.com
```

That's it. Skyvern parses the URL and figures out how to navigate the page and extract the data.

Below the input, you'll see quick-action chips like "Add a product to cart" and "What's the top post on hackernews". Click any of these to try a pre-filled example instead.

<Tip>
The more specific your prompt, the better. "Get the title of the #1 post" works much better than "get some data." Include the exact fields you want, what success looks like, and any constraints.
</Tip>

## Step 2: Pick an engine and run

Next to your prompt, you'll see an engine selector. Click it to switch engines:

| Engine | When to use it |
|--------|---------------|
| **Skyvern 1.0** | Tasks with a simple, single goal: filling a form, searching for information on Google, reading content from a page |
| **Skyvern 2.0** | Complex, multi-step tasks. Scores state-of-the-art 85.85% on the WebVoyager benchmark |
| **Skyvern 2.0 with Code** | The default engine. Same capabilities as Skyvern 2.0, plus auto-generates reusable code and a workflow from the run |

For this example, keep the default **Skyvern 2.0 with Code** selected.

Click the **send button** (arrow icon to the right of the input). Skyvern generates a workflow from your prompt and opens it in the workflow editor. Click **Run** in the top right, confirm the parameters, then click **Run workflow** to start execution.

<Accordion title="Optional: Advanced settings">
Click the **gear icon** next to send to configure additional options before running:

| Setting | What it does |
|---------|-------------|
| **Webhook Callback URL** | Endpoint to receive the extracted data when the run completes |
| **Proxy Location** | Route Skyvern through one of the available proxies |
| **Browser Session ID** | Reuse a persistent browser session to keep login state |
| **CDP Address** | Connect to your own browser via Chrome DevTools Protocol |
| **2FA Identifier** | Identifier for a 2FA code to handle two-factor auth automatically |
| **Extra HTTP Headers** | Custom HTTP request headers (dict format) |
| **Generate Script** | Auto-generate reusable scripts from a successful run |
| **Publish Workflow** | Create a workflow alongside this task run |
| **Max Steps Override** | Cap the number of steps the AI can take |
| **Data Schema** | Define structured JSON output format |
| **Max Screenshot Scrolls** | Limit scrolls for post-action screenshots (default: 3) |

These are all optional. The defaults work for most tasks.
</Accordion>

## Step 3: Watch the live browser

This is where it gets interesting. Once the task starts, you'll see the run detail page with a live view of the browser:

<img src="/images/cloud/discover-prompt-in-process.png" alt="Run detail page showing a live browser navigating Hacker News" />

On the left, a **live browser view**. You'll see pages load, elements highlight, and actions fire.

On the right, the **agent log**. A running stream of the AI's Thoughts, Decisions, and block executions. If something goes wrong, this is where you'll figure out why.

## Step 4: Review the results

When the task finishes, the status badge flips to **completed** and the extracted data appears at the top of the page.

<img src="/images/cloud/discover-workflow-completed.png" alt="Completed run showing extracted data and result tabs" />

### Extracted data

The **Extracted Information** block shows your results as structured JSON:

```json
[
  {
    "top_post_title": "Don't rent the cloud, own instead"
  }
]
```

Your result will differ — the #1 post changes constantly. The structure is what matters.

The agent log on the right confirms what happened. You'll see a final Thought summarizing the result.

### Tabs

Below the extracted data, five tabs give you different views of the run:

- **Overview**: The AI's reasoning timeline alongside browser screenshots. Each Thought, Block, and Action card shows what the agent saw and why it acted.
- **Output**: The complete JSON output and any downloaded files.
- **Parameters**: The exact configuration that was submitted (URL, prompt, engine, schema). Useful for reproducing or tweaking the run.
- **Recording**: Full video replay of the browser session, start to finish.
- **Code**: Auto-generated Python code to reproduce this task via the API or SDK.

## Try something bigger

Now that you've seen the basic flow, here are a few ideas to try next:

- **Fill a form**: Point Skyvern at a contact form and tell it what to enter in each field
- **Compare prices**: Extract product names and prices from an e-commerce page using a data schema
- **Navigate a flow**: Use Skyvern 2.0 to walk through a multi-page checkout or signup process
- **Use an Agent template**: Check the **Agents** section in the sidebar for pre-built automations you can run instantly

---

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card
    title="Run a Task via API"
    icon="code"
    href="/running-automations/run-a-task"
  >
    Trigger automations programmatically with the Skyvern API
  </Card>
  <Card
    title="Core Concepts"
    icon="book"
    href="/getting-started/core-concepts"
  >
    Understand tasks, workflows, and other building blocks
  </Card>
</CardGroup>
