Grok Build Desktop: Run the Coding Agent Without VS Code

Grok Build Desktop (Community) is a free standalone app that runs xAI's Grok Build coding agent on Windows and macOS. No editor, no terminal. You install it, open a project folder, and start working.

I built it, and I also build the VS Code extension. Neither is affiliated with or endorsed by xAI.

Last verified: August 7, 2026. The app is a pre-release, and code signing is still rolling out. See Before You Install.

Grok Build Desktop (Community) on Windows: the projects rail on the left, a conversation with an image generated inline in the middle, and the project file tree with open file tabs on the right

Download Grok Build Desktop

At a Glance

Why This Exists

Most people who bounce off coding agents do not bounce off the agent.

They bounce off what sits in front of it. Install an editor. Configure the editor. Find the extension. Work out which panel does what. By the time the agent is ready, the thing you wanted to try has gone cold.

The setup is the part that stops people, not the agent.

I watched that happen in workshops, and on my own fresh machines. So the same agent UI now ships as an app you open on its own.

What You Get

Three panes, and nothing to configure first.

Projects on the left. Add as many folders as you want. Each keeps its own conversations, and you switch between them from the rail without reopening anything.
The conversation in the middle. Streaming responses, reasoning traces, slash commands, images and diagrams inline, and voice dictation.
Your files on the right. Browse the tree, open text files in tabs, and edit them in place. Markdown opens as a preview with a source toggle, and Ctrl/Cmd+S saves.
A permission card before anything happens. Every file write and every shell command is shown to you first, with the exact command, and waits.
Your history, shared. Conversations live under ~/.grok, the same place the CLI and the extension keep them, so the same work is there whichever host you open.

The engine is the official Grok Build CLI. The app is the interface, exactly as the extension is. Same agent, same models, same MCP servers, same memory.

Before You Install

Two things you should know first, because you will meet both.

Code signing is still rolling out, macOS first. Until a build is signed, the first launch asks you to let it through: on Windows, More info then Run anyway; on macOS, right-click then Open. If you get no warning, your build is already signed. I would rather you read that here than meet it on your own and assume something is wrong.

It runs a coding agent on your machine. It reads files, edits them, and runs commands, asking you first unless you turn that off. That is the same posture as the VS Code extension. Open projects you trust, and read the source if you want to see exactly what it does.

It is also a pre-release. It does the job I built it for, and it will change faster than the extension does for a while.

Which One Do I Want?

Three things share the same agent. Ten seconds to pick the right one.

Grok Build Desktop (Community). You want the agent on your own machine and you do not want to install or learn an editor. Free, Windows and macOS. You are on that page now.
Grok Build for VS Code (Community). You already work in VS Code or Cursor and you want the agent in your sidebar, with native diffs. Free, and it has 50,000+ installs across the VS Code Marketplace and Open VSX.
AFK Pilot. You want to steer either of the above from your phone or any browser. Start the work at your desk, carry on from the next room. Free tier, $5 a month to remove its limits. Setup: Grok Remote Control.

Standalone app: Grok Build Desktop. Inside your editor: Grok Build for VS Code. From your phone: AFK Pilot on top of either.

The first two work on their own. AFK Pilot is the remote layer you add when you want it.

Install It

Download the build for your machine at afkpilot.com/desktop. macOS Apple silicon, macOS Intel, and Windows x64. The page detects yours and still shows all three.
Let it through if your OS asks. Unsigned builds get a SmartScreen or Gatekeeper prompt. See Before You Install.
Open a project folder. The app asks for one on first launch, and the + on the PROJECTS heading adds more later.
Sign in to Grok. Onboarding installs the grok CLI if it is missing and walks you through signing in.

No account is needed for the app itself. You only sign in to AFK Pilot if you want the phone.

Requirements

Windows x64, macOS on Apple silicon, or macOS on Intel. No Linux build yet. On Linux, use the VS Code extension, which supports it.
A SuperGrok or X Premium+ subscription, or an xAI API key. This is the agent underneath, and the free Grok tier does not include it.
No VS Code, no Cursor, no terminal.

FAQ

Is there a Grok Build desktop app? Yes. Grok Build Desktop (Community) is a standalone app for Windows and macOS that runs the official Grok Build coding agent. xAI does not publish one. This is a community build, and it is free.

Do I need VS Code to use Grok Build? No. The extension is one way to get a graphical interface, and the desktop app is the other. Full comparison: Does Grok Build have a GUI?.

Is Grok Build Desktop free? Yes, free to download and use, and it needs no account. The agent underneath needs a SuperGrok / X Premium+ subscription or an xAI API key. Its source is public under FSL-1.1-MIT (Fair Source), and each release converts to plain MIT two years after it ships.

Which operating systems does it run on? Windows x64, macOS Apple silicon, and macOS Intel. No Linux build yet.

Why does Windows or macOS warn me when I open it? An unsigned build is not recognised by SmartScreen or Gatekeeper, so your OS asks before running it. On Windows choose More info then Run anyway; on macOS right-click then Open. Signing is rolling out, macOS first, so a newer build may not ask at all.

Is it an official xAI app? No. Grok Build Desktop (Community) is an unofficial community project. Grok and Grok Build are trademarks of xAI, and this is not affiliated with or endorsed by them. It runs xAI's real CLI unmodified.

Which model does it use? Whatever Grok Build is set to. Grok 4.5 is the default, and you switch models in the app. If you want the model specifically: How to Use Grok 4.5 in VS Code.

Can I use it from my phone? Yes, through AFK Pilot. Link the desktop app once and the same conversation opens in a browser on your phone. Setup: Grok Remote Control.

Does it edit files, or only chat? Both. The agent edits your project, and the file panel opens text files in tabs so you can edit them yourself, with unsaved-change markers and a save that refuses to silently overwrite what the agent changed underneath you.

Can I use it and the extension on the same machine? Yes. They share history under ~/.grok, so the conversation you started in one is there in the other.

If you build with agents, that is most of what I write about here. The tools are one lane. The other is what actually changes about product work when the building stops being the constraint.

Grok Build Desktop (Community) and Grok Build for VS Code (Community) are unofficial community projects by Pawel Huryn. Not affiliated with or endorsed by xAI.

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