Cursor Remote Control is Cursor's own feature. It lets you see and reply to the agents running in Cursor on your computer from the Cursor iOS app. Cursor's docs say the agent loop moves to Cursor's cloud while the tool calls stay on your machine. It steers Cursor's own agent only. This page explains it first, then the route for what it does not cover.
Three routes reach an agent in Cursor from a phone today, and they are not interchangeable. Two are Cursor's: Cloud Agents run in a cloud VM on a clone of your repository, and Remote Control steers a local Cursor agent from the iOS app on a paid plan, with the agent loop in Cursor's cloud. The third is mine: the AFK Pilot extension (previously Grok Build for VS Code) runs Grok Build, Muse Code, DeepSeek, Codex, Claude Code and Google's Antigravity inside Cursor and puts them in any browser, including Android, on a free tier, with local file editing. The whole agent stays on your machine, and it reaches Grok Build and Muse Code, whose vendors ship no remote of their own.
I build AFK Pilot. Two of the three options here are Cursor's, not mine, and AFK Pilot is not affiliated with or endorsed by Cursor, SpaceXAI (formerly xAI), Meta, DeepSeek, OpenAI, Anthropic or Google.
Last updated: November 5, 2026.
At a Glance
Cursor's Cloud Agents. A cloud run: isolated VMs on a clone of your repo. Any browser, results as a branch or pull request.
Cursor's Remote Control. Steers Cursor's own agent from the iOS app; Cursor's docs put the agent loop in its cloud and the tool calls on your machine. Needs Cursor 3.9.8+, a paid plan that includes Cloud Agents, and cloud data storage enabled. No Android app yet.
The third route. The AFK Pilot extension in Cursor, running Grok Build, Muse Code, DeepSeek, Codex, Claude Code and Antigravity, paired once with AFK Pilot and driven from any browser on iPhone or Android. Installable as a phone app (PWA).
Setup. Pair once with a one-time code. No tunnels, no config, no Git remote needed.
Your files. They stay local, and from the phone you can browse the tree and open, edit and save a text file.
Price. Free tier: 1 linked device, 100 remote messages a week. Remote Max: $5 a month, no limits.
Three Kinds of Remote in Cursor
"Remote" means three different things here, and picking the wrong one costs you an afternoon.
Cloud agents
Cursor's own description: "Cloud agents use the same agent fundamentals but run in isolated VMs in the cloud with full development environments instead of on your local machine." You start one from cursor.com/agents in any browser, from the iOS app, from the IDE, from Slack, from a PR comment, or over the API. It works on a clone of your repository, and the result arrives as a branch or a pull request.
When the work is repo-shaped, meaning committed code and a task that ends in a diff, this is the strongest option on the page. Your laptop can be shut, and several can run at once. If that describes your task, use it and skip the rest.
The boundary is the clone. A cloud VM is not your working tree, so uncommitted changes, local services, and files outside the repository are not there.
Remote Control
Cursor's first-party answer for local sessions, first shipped July 28, 2026, and the reason "cursor remote control" is a product name now rather than a generic phrase. Their description: "Remote Control lets you take an agent you're running on your computer and keep directing it from your phone. The agent loop moves to the cloud while its tools keep running on your machine, so it reads your files, runs your tests, and uses your local setup." In the docs' version you turn it on in the Agents Window under Settings → Agents, then type /remote-control in the agent input, and the session appears in the iOS app's inbox. Cursor's October 6 changelog adds that it is now on by default for everyone except Enterprise organizations: sign in to the iOS app, tap your computer, approve the pairing in Cursor, and your local agents appear in a list.
That solves a real problem: your environment, your tests, your machine's tool calls, steered from a phone while you are elsewhere. Two boundaries define it. Per Cursor's docs, the agent loop and the model context it needs run in Cursor's cloud, not on your machine (the changelog's shorter version says the agent keeps running on your computer). And it steers Cursor's own agent only, so agents from other vendors, such as Grok Build or Muse Code, are out of its reach.
Two requirements decide whether you can use it at all: iOS only (iPhone or iPad on iOS 26 or later), and a paid plan that includes Cloud Agents. A Git remote is no longer one: Cursor's docs now say the project doesn't need one. The phone side shows changed files in a diff view, and Cursor is direct that "it isn't an IDE" and not a full workspace, so you review changes rather than open arbitrary project files. Full requirements list in the FAQ.
Six agents inside Cursor, from any phone
The third route keeps the agent itself on your machine. You run the AFK Pilot extension inside Cursor, and it drives each vendor's own agent: Grok Build, Meta's Muse Code, DeepSeek, OpenAI Codex, Claude Code and Google's Antigravity. AFK Pilot puts those sessions in any browser, so the phone reaches whichever agent you have connected, on Android as well as iPhone, on the free tier. The extension dials out, so there is no inbound port. You pair once with a one-time code.
What it adds depends on the agent. Grok Build and Muse Code ship no remote of their own, so this is how you reach them from a phone. Codex and Claude Code do have official remotes: Codex in the ChatGPT mobile app, for Mac or Windows computers set up in the ChatGPT desktop app, and Claude Code's Remote Control on a Claude subscription. Here they sit in the same phone UI as the others, in the same Cursor window. Antigravity is off by default: turn it on in Settings → Advanced. It runs on your own computer only and is connected at the computer, not from the phone. Google's own Remote Control covers the sessions in its Antigravity app. DeepSeek Harness, DeepSeek's official agent harness, runs in the same sidebar too: turn on DeepSeek in Settings → Advanced (it's off by default), then connect it in Settings → Providers, and from then on a linked phone can chat with it.
Nothing stops you using two of them. They are different tools, not competitors.
Set It Up in Three Steps
Install the extension from Cursor's Extensions browser. Open Extensions in Cursor (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+X), search “AFK Pilot” or the ID
grok-vscode-phuryn, and install. Cursor's extension search is served from Open VSX; the listing there is for reading, since Open VSX has no remote-install button. The extension is free, with 180,000+ installs across the VS Code Marketplace and Open VSX, and it runs in Cursor 3.x. On first launch it walks you through installing thegrokCLI and signing in, one click per step; Muse Code, Codex and Claude Code connect the same way under Settings → Providers, and so do DeepSeek and Antigravity once you turn them on in Settings → Advanced. Grok Build is free to try with usage limits on any X or Grok account, and sustained use needs SuperGrok, X Premium+, or an xAI API key.Link this device. In AFK Pilot, click the phone button in the chat's top bar and choose Sign in and link this machine. The approval page opens in your browser.
Open it on your phone. Visit afkpilot.com on the phone, sign in, and tap Install app.
That is the whole setup. No tunnels, no config, and no Git remote required. Longer walkthrough, including the standalone desktop host: Grok Remote Control.
What You Can Do From the Phone
It is the same session Cursor is running, not a separate agent, so the workspace, the repo, and the history are the ones on your desk. From the phone you send new work and approve the agent's permission prompts, watch tool calls stream live, switch the model mid-task, and browse the project to open, edit and save a text file. It is an editor rather than a file manager: no create, delete, or rename. Full walkthrough: Grok Remote Control.
What This Is Not
Not remote control of Cursor's own agent. This drives the agents AFK Pilot runs inside Cursor: Grok Build, Muse Code, DeepSeek, Codex, Claude Code and Antigravity. If you want Cursor's own agent steered from your phone, that is Cursor's Remote Control, and you should use it when you meet its requirements.
Not a mobile IDE. You are steering an agent and making the occasional targeted edit, not writing code by hand on a 6-inch screen.
Not a Cursor product, or any agent vendor's. AFK Pilot is an unofficial community project, and mine. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Cursor, SpaceXAI, Meta, DeepSeek, OpenAI, Anthropic or Google.
Not a substitute for your machine staying on. Since v2.0.1 the extension holds off idle sleep while a device is linked, so a turn you started from the phone survives the screensaver. A closed lid still suspends on every operating system. Cursor's Remote Control has the same requirement, with a Keep this computer awake setting for a plugged-in machine. Cursor's Cloud Agents escape it, and so does AFK Pilot Cloud: a dedicated Linux machine with the same extension and four of the agents preinstalled (DeepSeek and Antigravity are not on Cloud), which sleeps on its own and wakes when you open it, so your laptop can stay shut.
Privacy and What Leaves Your Machine
Three routes, three data postures, and it is worth knowing which one you are picking.
Cloud Agents. A copy of your repository is checked out and executed in Cursor's VM. The code is there because it has to be.
Cursor's Remote Control. Repository, secrets and credentials stay on your machine. Per Cursor's docs, the agent loop runs in its cloud, and tool results and the model context it needs go to Cursor. That is why it is unavailable when your privacy settings disable cloud data storage. Accounts on the legacy Privacy Mode have to switch to Cursor's current Privacy Mode first, and that switch cannot be undone.
This route. Messages are relayed in memory and never stored on our servers. Files stay on your machine, where the agent reads them locally.
It is still a relay, so your prompts and the agent's replies pass through it in transit. Your files never do. Every linked device binds to your account and stays revocable, so a lost phone is a revocation rather than an incident. If a third-party relay is outside your threat model, the self-hosted Tailscale alternatives keep every byte on hardware you control.
Pricing
The free tier is one linked device and 100 remote messages a week, with the full chat interface. Remote Max is $5 a month and removes both limits. A fair-use burst cap of 20 messages a minute applies on every plan, and messages inside the host itself are never limited. A linked device means a host machine: the phones and browsers you open it in do not count.
The extension itself stays free to install. It is open source (FSL-1.1-MIT; each release becomes MIT after two years): free to use, modify, and redistribute for any purpose except building a competing commercial product or service. Cursor's Remote Control needs a paid Cursor plan; this route's free tier does not, which is most of why it exists.
FAQ
Can I control Cursor from my phone?
Yes, three ways. Cursor's Remote Control steers Cursor's own agent from the iOS app, on Cursor 3.9.8+ and a paid plan; Cursor's docs put the agent loop in its cloud. Cursor's Cloud Agents run on a clone of your repository in a cloud VM, from any browser. The third route installs the AFK Pilot extension in Cursor and drives Grok Build, Muse Code, DeepSeek, Codex, Claude Code or Antigravity from any browser including Android, on a free tier, with local file editing.
Does Cursor have a phone app?
Yes, on iPhone and iPad (iOS 26 or later), since late June 2026, covering both Cloud Agents and Remote Control sessions. There is no Android app yet: Cursor says Android is planned, with no release date, so Android users get the web surface at cursor.com/agents instead. That is the clearest practical gap today: on Android you get Cursor's web surface for a cloud agent, or the third route for a local one, which runs in any mobile browser and installs as an app on both platforms.
What are Cursor Remote Control's requirements?
Cursor 3.9.8 or newer, a paid plan that includes Cloud Agents (Premium, Super, Ultra, Teams or Enterprise on Cursor's current plans, or a legacy Start, Pro, Pro+ or Ultra plan), and cloud data storage enabled on your account. The workspace no longer needs a Git remote: Cursor's docs now say local and Remote SSH workspaces both work without one. It is iOS only and English only, and your computer has to stay awake and online. On Enterprise an admin has to turn it on (Cursor's docs say the same for Teams). Accounts on the legacy Privacy Mode must switch to the current Privacy Mode first, which cannot be undone.
Can I edit local files from my phone?
Not with Cursor's own apps, which show changed files in a diff view rather than a workspace. With the extension's remote file panel you can: browse the project tree and open, edit and save a text file, with several open as tabs beside the chat. Markdown has a preview toggle, the limit is 2 MiB of text, and there is no create, delete, or rename.
Is my code uploaded to a cloud?
It depends which route you pick. A Cloud Agent runs on a clone of your repository inside Cursor's VM, so the code is there. Cursor's Remote Control keeps the repository and your secrets local but, per its docs, runs the agent loop in Cursor's cloud and sends it tool results and the model context it needs. The third route keeps files on your machine and relays only the conversation, in memory, never stored on our servers.
Does this remote-control Cursor's Composer?
No. It runs other vendors' agents inside Cursor (Grok Build, Muse Code, DeepSeek, Codex, Claude Code and Antigravity) and drives those from your phone. If you want Cursor's own agent directed from your phone, Cursor's Remote Control does exactly that on iOS on paid plans, and it is the better tool for that job. This route is what you use when you want an agent in Cursor you can drive from your phone outside those requirements.
Is it free?
There is a free tier: one linked device and 100 remote messages a week, with the full chat interface, and Remote Max is $5 a month for unlimited devices and messages. The extension is free to install either way. Each agent runs on its own account or key: Grok Build is free to try with usage limits on any X or Grok account, with SuperGrok, X Premium+, or an xAI API key for sustained use. Cursor's Remote Control requires a paid Cursor plan.
Does it work with Devin Desktop (formerly Windsurf)?
It should, though I have not run it there myself. Windsurf became Devin Desktop in June 2026 under Cognition, its VS Code base is 1.126, above the extension's 1.106 floor, and it installs extensions from Open VSX, where this one is published. Tested and supported today: VS Code 1.106+ and Cursor 3.x. Google's Antigravity editor installs the extension from Open VSX too, and may hold you on the last version compatible with its VS Code base (Antigravity as an agent is a separate option, off by default in Settings → Advanced).
Do I need a tunnel or a VPN?
No. The extension dials out to the service, so there is no inbound port to open and no tunnel to keep alive. Pairing is a one-time code you enter once. Deciding between interfaces first: Does Grok Build have a GUI?.
AFK Pilot exists because a user asked for it, which is most of what I have to say about product work. I write that up here: what building in the open teaches me, not the tool tour.
AFK Pilot and Grok Build Desktop (Community) are unofficial community projects by Pawel Huryn, not affiliated with or endorsed by Cursor, SpaceXAI (formerly xAI), Meta, DeepSeek, OpenAI, Anthropic or Google. Grok, Grok Build, and xAI are trademarks of xAI. Muse Code is a trademark of Meta; DeepSeek of DeepSeek; Codex of OpenAI; Claude and Claude Code of Anthropic; Antigravity of Google.