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Cloud AI agents: Codex, Claude Code and cloud desktops

Chat with Codex and Claude Code in a cloud Linux workspace and let them write and run code, or open an Ubuntu cloud desktop with Chrome and DeepSeek Harness. No AWS credentials needed, and currently free.

Updated October 24, 2026

  1. Create a workspace

    Open Cloud agents in the sidebar, enter a name, choose Create workspace, then Open. Each workspace is its own cloud Linux container with Codex, Claude Code, Git, Node.js and Python and a 20 GB disk. By default an account can have 3 workspaces with 1 awake at a time. Sizes are Basic (1 vCPU, 4 GiB memory) and Standard (2 vCPU, 8 GiB); change the size while the workspace sleeps.

  2. Desktop workspaces

    Choose the Desktop type when creating a workspace to get an Ubuntu cloud desktop with Google Chrome and DeepSeek Harness, always at the Performance size (4 vCPU, 12 GiB). Once it is open, connect over RDP in the Desktop tab. Click the desktop to type, including with your computer's input method (Chinese, say). The screen follows the window's size, and ⌘V / Ctrl+V pastes from your computer, in terminals too. Text copied on the desktop comes back to your computer, and the toolbar has the clipboard, full screen and reconnect. DeepSeek Harness uses DeepSeek V4.1 Flash on Workers AI with no API key, and opens in Chrome when the desktop starts; when it asks for a working folder, choose workspace in the home folder. Its Plugins page has custom plugin markets switched on: add an index source under Discover to install community plugins. The browser's sign-ins, the desktop's settings and the harness's sessions live in /workspace, so they survive sleep, and downloads go to /workspace/Downloads. A desktop workspace has no Chat or Accounts tab; Files, Git, Terminal and Activity work as in an AI coding workspace.

  3. Sign in or use an API key

    Under Accounts, sign in with ChatGPT (for Codex) or Claude (for Claude Code): open the sign-in page and enter or paste the code shown. You can also enter an OpenAI or Anthropic API key, or the base URL and model names of a compatible service such as DeepSeek, Kimi or OpenRouter. Until Codex has a sign-in or key it uses Workers AI, so you can start chatting right away. You can also sign in to GitHub (push code and open pull requests) and Cloudflare (deploy Workers and Pages with cf). Account sign-in needs the workspace awake; API keys can be managed while it sleeps.

  4. Give tasks in the chat

    In Chat, pick Codex or Claude Code and describe the task; they edit files and run commands in the workspace. Type / for commands and skills, use @ to reference workspace files, and attach images, documents and other files up to 100 MB each. Plan mode proposes a plan before acting. By default they ask before running commands or changing files; chat settings can switch to full access.

  5. Files, Git and terminals

    In Files you can upload, download (folders as zip), preview and edit files. In Git you can create a repository, review changes, commit and create branches, and push after signing in to GitHub. Terminal offers up to 8 tabs that stay connected as you switch; on phones a key bar adds Esc, Tab, Ctrl and the arrows, and an input box handles Chinese and multi-line text.

  6. Tools, plugins and MCP

    In the chat, open Tools, plugins and MCP to install plugins from marketplaces, add marketplaces, add MCP servers as a local command (stdio) or a remote URL, and browse Codex skills and connectors and Claude Code commands and subagents. An MCP server applies to every chat in the workspace, and its secrets are stored encrypted with the sign-ins.

  7. Sleep, backups and restore

    A workspace saves and sleeps after 30 idle minutes by default; Settings offers 10 minutes to 4 hours, or never. You can also choose Save and sleep at any time and Wake it when needed. Sleep keeps the files in /workspace, the chats and the sign-ins; software installed outside /workspace and running programs are not kept. Every sleep backs up /workspace, uploading only what changed, and the latest 5 backups are kept. You can restore the whole workspace to a backup, or bring back one file or folder while it is awake.

  8. Sharing and notifications

    In Settings, invite other CloudPilot users by email. Invitations last 7 days, a workspace has at most 10 members, and a member's wake counts toward your awake limit. With Only me, members can only view its state. With Share the terminal and files (switch while the workspace sleeps), members use the terminal, files and Git, but no one, including you, can use AI chat, and the workspace deletes its AI sign-ins, API keys and chats. With Share everything, members can also chat with your AI accounts and see every chat. Turn on notifications for a device to be told when a reply finishes or the AI needs an approval or an answer.

Sleep stops replies in progress, terminal commands and background programs. If a container stops unexpectedly, changes since the last save are lost, so commit important work to Git or choose Back up now.

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Related questions

Do cloud AI agents cost anything?

They are currently free, with no Pro access code or AWS credentials needed. When you sign in with your own ChatGPT or Claude account or use an API key, model usage is billed by that service under your subscription or key. Workers AI may have a monthly usage limit.

What is kept while a workspace sleeps?

Files in /workspace, the chats, AI sign-ins and API keys are kept. Software installed outside /workspace, commands running in terminals and background services are not. With the experimental fast wake, sleep also snapshots the whole container so installed software survives, but the snapshot excludes sign-ins and .env files.

Are my AI sign-ins and API keys safe?

Sign-ins and API keys are stored encrypted and used only by their workspace. They are deleted when you switch to Share the terminal and files or delete the workspace. .env files stay out of ordinary backups and are encrypted separately.

Why is AI chat off after I shared a workspace?

With Share the terminal and files, members could read anything in the workspace from the terminal, so it keeps no AI sign-ins, API keys or chats and no one can use AI. To use AI again, switch to Only me or Share everything in Settings, then sign in or enter an API key again.

Why can't I create or wake a workspace?

By default an account can have 3 workspaces with 1 awake at a time, and a member waking a workspace you shared counts toward yours. When a limit is reached, delete a workspace you no longer need or put another one to sleep. When the service is busy, waking retries automatically for up to about 15 minutes.