Data

Tools

Indexes

Applications

Experiments

Awesome

An open API service indexing awesome lists of open source software.

https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn

Spawn any agent, on any cloud
https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn

claude cli codex openclaw vm

Last synced: 11 days ago
JSON representation

Spawn any agent, on any cloud

Awesome Lists containing this project

README 

          
# Spawn



Launch any AI agent on any cloud with a single command. Coding agents, research agents, self-hosted AI tools — Spawn deploys them all. All models powered by [OpenRouter](https://openrouter.ai). (ALPHA software, use at your own risk!)



**10 agents. 8 clouds. 79 working combinations. Zero config.**



## Install



**macOS / Linux — and Windows users inside a WSL2 terminal (Ubuntu, Debian, etc.):**

```bash

curl -fsSL https://openrouter.ai/labs/spawn/cli/install.sh | bash

```



**Windows PowerShell (outside WSL):**

```powershell

irm https://openrouter.ai/labs/spawn/cli/install.ps1 | iex

```



## Usage



```bash

spawn                         # Interactive picker

spawn           # Launch directly

spawn matrix                  # Show the full agent x cloud matrix

```



### Examples



```bash

spawn                                    # Interactive picker

spawn claude sprite                      # Claude Code on Sprite

spawn codex hetzner                      # Codex CLI on Hetzner

spawn claude sprite --prompt "Fix bugs"  # Non-interactive with prompt

spawn codex sprite -p "Add tests"        # Short form

spawn claude                             # Show clouds available for Claude

spawn delete                             # Delete a running server

spawn delete -c hetzner                  # Delete a server on Hetzner

```



### Commands



| Command | Description |

|---------|-------------|

| `spawn` | Interactive agent + cloud picker |

| `spawn  ` | Launch agent on cloud directly |

| `spawn   --dry-run` | Preview without provisioning |

| `spawn   --zone ` | Set zone/region for the cloud |

| `spawn   --size ` | Set instance size/type for the cloud |

| `spawn   --prompt "text"` | Non-interactive with prompt (or `-p`) |

| `spawn   --prompt-file ` | Prompt from file (or `-f`) |

| `spawn   --headless` | Provision and exit (no interactive session) |

| `spawn   --output json` | Headless mode with structured JSON on stdout |

| `spawn   --model ` | Set the model ID (overrides agent default) |

| `spawn   --config ` | Load options from a JSON config file |

| `spawn   --steps ` | Comma-separated setup steps to enable |

| `spawn   --custom` | Show interactive size/region pickers |

| `spawn  gcp --no-secure-boot` | Disable GCP Shielded VM (Secure Boot is on by default) |

| `spawn ` | Show available clouds for an agent |

| `spawn ` | Show available agents for a cloud |

| `spawn matrix` | Full agent x cloud matrix |

| `spawn list` | Browse and rerun previous spawns |

| `spawn list ` | Filter history by agent or cloud name |

| `spawn list -a ` | Filter history by agent |

| `spawn list -c ` | Filter history by cloud |

| `spawn list --flat` | Show flat list (disable tree view) |

| `spawn list --json` | Output history as JSON |

| `spawn list --clear` | Clear all spawn history |

| `spawn tree` | Show recursive spawn tree (parent/child relationships) |

| `spawn tree --json` | Output spawn tree as JSON |

| `spawn history export` | Dump history as JSON to stdout (used by parent VMs) |

| `spawn fix` | Re-run agent setup on an existing VM (re-inject credentials, reinstall) |

| `spawn fix ` | Fix a specific spawn by name or ID |

| `spawn link ` | Register an existing VM by IP |

| `spawn link  --agent ` | Specify the agent running on the VM |

| `spawn link  --cloud ` | Specify the cloud provider |

| `spawn last` | Instantly rerun the most recent spawn |

| `spawn agents` | List all agents with descriptions |

| `spawn clouds` | List all cloud providers |

| `spawn feedback "message"` | Send feedback to the Spawn team |

| `spawn uninstall` | Uninstall spawn CLI and optionally remove data |

| `spawn update` | Check for CLI updates |

| `spawn delete` | Interactively select and destroy a cloud server |

| `spawn delete -a ` | Filter servers to delete by agent |

| `spawn delete -c ` | Filter servers to delete by cloud |

| `spawn delete --name  --yes` | Headless delete by name (no prompts) |

| `spawn status` | Show live state of cloud servers |

| `spawn status -a ` | Filter status by agent |

| `spawn status -c ` | Filter status by cloud |

| `spawn status --prune` | Remove gone servers from history |

| `spawn help` | Show help message |

| `spawn version` | Show version |



#### Config File



The `--config` flag loads options from a JSON file. CLI flags override config values.



```json

{

  "model": "openai/gpt-5.3-codex",

  "steps": ["github", "browser", "telegram"],

  "name": "my-dev-box",

  "setup": {

    "telegram_bot_token": "123456:ABC-DEF...",

    "github_token": "ghp_xxxx"

  }

}

```



```bash

spawn codex gcp --config setup.json --headless --output json

```



#### Setup Steps



Control which optional setup steps run with `--steps`:



```bash

spawn openclaw gcp --steps github,browser     # Only GitHub + Chrome

spawn claude gcp --steps ""                    # Skip all optional steps

```



Available steps vary by agent:



| Step | Agents | Description |

|------|--------|-------------|

| `github` | All | GitHub CLI + git identity |

| `reuse-api-key` | All | Reuse saved OpenRouter key |

| `browser` | openclaw | Chrome browser (~400 MB) |

| `telegram` | openclaw | Telegram bot (set `TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN` for non-interactive) |

| `whatsapp` | openclaw | WhatsApp linking (interactive QR scan, skipped in headless) |



#### Fast Mode



Use `--fast` for significantly faster deploys. Enables all speed optimizations:



```bash

spawn claude hetzner --fast

```



What `--fast` does:

- **Parallel boot**: server creation runs concurrently with API key prompt and account checks

- **Tarballs**: installs agents from pre-built tarballs instead of live install

- **Skip cloud-init**: for lightweight agents (Claude, OpenCode, Hermes), skips the package install wait since the base OS already has what's needed

- **Snapshots**: uses pre-built cloud images when available (Hetzner, DigitalOcean)



#### Beta Features



Individual optimizations can be enabled separately with `--beta `. The flag is repeatable:



```bash

spawn claude gcp --beta tarball --beta parallel

```



| Feature | Description |

|---------|-------------|

| `tarball` | Use pre-built tarball for agent install (faster, skips live install) |

| `images` | Use pre-built cloud images/snapshots (faster boot) |

| `parallel` | Parallelize server boot with setup prompts |

| `recursive` | Install spawn CLI on VM so it can spawn child VMs |



`--fast` enables `tarball`, `images`, and `parallel` (not `recursive`).



#### Secure Boot (GCP)



GCP instances are provisioned as [Shielded VMs](https://cloud.google.com/security/shielded-cloud/shielded-vm)

**by default** — Secure Boot, vTPM, and integrity monitoring are all enabled. This

hardens the boot chain and is required for the Cloudflare (CF) skill to attest the VM.

GCP's default Ubuntu LTS images are Shielded-VM-compatible, so this works out of the box.



Opt out for a custom image that is not UEFI/Secure-Boot-capable:



```bash

spawn claude gcp --no-secure-boot

```



> Secure Boot is a GCP-only feature here. AWS spawns run on Lightsail, which does not

> expose Secure Boot; the flag is a no-op on other clouds.



#### Recursive Spawn



Use `--beta recursive` to let spawned VMs create their own child VMs:



```bash

spawn claude hetzner --beta recursive

```



What this does:

- **Installs spawn CLI** on the remote VM

- **Delegates credentials** (cloud + OpenRouter) so child VMs can authenticate

- **Injects parent tracking** (`SPAWN_PARENT_ID`, `SPAWN_DEPTH`) into the VM environment

- **Passes `--beta recursive`** to children so they can also spawn recursively



View the spawn tree:

```bash

spawn tree

# spawn-abc  Claude Code / Hetzner  2m ago

#   ├─ spawn-def  Codex CLI / Hetzner  1m ago

#   └─ spawn-ghi  OpenClaw / Hetzner  30s ago

#       └─ spawn-jkl  Claude Code / Hetzner  10s ago

```



Tear down an entire tree:

```bash

spawn delete --cascade     # Delete a VM and all its children

```



#### Local Sandbox



The `sandbox` cloud runs an agent inside a throwaway Docker container on your own machine, instead of directly on your host:



```bash

spawn claude sandbox

```



What this does:

- **Pulls the agent's Docker image** from `ghcr.io/openrouterteam/spawn-`

- **Runs the agent in a container** with filesystem, network, and process isolation

- **Auto-installs Docker** if not present (OrbStack on macOS, docker.io on Linux)

- **Cleans up the container** automatically when the session ends



It's the same setup as the `local` cloud, but the agent can't touch your host filesystem, shell, or SSH keys. (This was previously the `--beta sandbox` flag.)



### Without the CLI



Every combination works as a one-liner — no install required:



```bash

bash <(curl -fsSL https://openrouter.ai/labs/spawn/{cloud}/{agent}.sh)

```



### Non-Interactive Mode



Skip prompts by providing environment variables:



```bash

# OpenRouter API key (required for all agents)

export OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-xxxxx



# Cloud-specific credentials (varies by provider)

# Note: Sprite uses `sprite login` for authentication

export HCLOUD_TOKEN=...           # For Hetzner

export DIGITALOCEAN_ACCESS_TOKEN=...  # For DigitalOcean



# Run non-interactively

spawn claude hetzner

```



You can also use inline environment variables:



```bash

OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-xxxxx spawn claude sprite

```



Get your OpenRouter API key at: https://openrouter.ai/settings/keys



For cloud-specific auth, see each cloud's README in this repository.



## Troubleshooting



### Installation issues



If spawn fails to install, try these steps:



1. **Check bun version**: spawn requires bun >= 1.2.0

   ```bash

   bun --version

   bun upgrade  # if needed

   ```



2. **Manual installation**: If auto-install fails, install bun first

   ```bash

   curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash

   source ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zshrc for zsh

   curl -fsSL https://openrouter.ai/labs/spawn/cli/install.sh | bash

   ```



3. **PATH issues**: If `spawn` command not found after install

   ```bash

   # Add to your shell config (~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc)

   export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"

   ```



### Windows (PowerShell)



1. **Use the PowerShell installer** — not the bash one:

   ```powershell

   irm https://openrouter.ai/labs/spawn/cli/install.ps1 | iex

   ```

   The `.ps1` extension is required. The default `install.sh` is bash and won't work in PowerShell.



2. **Set credentials via environment variables** before launching:

   ```powershell

   $env:OPENROUTER_API_KEY = "sk-or-v1-xxxxx"

   $env:DIGITALOCEAN_ACCESS_TOKEN = "dop_v1_xxxxx"  # For DigitalOcean

   $env:HCLOUD_TOKEN = "xxxxx"              # For Hetzner

   spawn openclaw digitalocean

   ```



3. **Local build failures during auto-update** are normal on Windows — the CLI falls back to a pre-built binary automatically. You may see a brief build error followed by a successful update.



4. **EISDIR or EEXIST errors on config files**: If you see errors about `digitalocean.json` being a directory, delete it:

   ```powershell

   Remove-Item -Recurse -Force "$HOME\.config\spawn\digitalocean.json" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

   spawn openclaw digitalocean

   ```



### Headless JSON mode — agent exits immediately



When using `--headless --output json` with Claude Code, you must also pass `--prompt` (or `-p`). Without it, Claude exits with `Input must be provided through stdin or --prompt` and the JSON output will show `"status":"error"`:



```bash

# WRONG — Claude exits immediately

spawn claude gcp --headless --output json



# RIGHT — provide a prompt

spawn claude gcp --headless --output json --prompt "Fix all linter errors"

```



Note: auto-update messages may appear before the JSON on older CLI versions. Run `spawn update` to get the fix.



### Agent launch failures



If an agent fails to install or launch on a cloud:



1. **Check credentials**: Ensure cloud provider credentials are set

   ```bash

   # Example for Hetzner

   export HCLOUD_TOKEN=your-token-here

   spawn claude hetzner

   ```



2. **Try a different cloud**: Some clouds may have temporary issues

   ```bash

   spawn   # Interactive picker to choose another cloud

   ```



3. **Use --dry-run**: Preview what spawn will do before provisioning

   ```bash

   spawn claude hetzner --dry-run

   ```



4. **Check cloud status**: Visit your cloud provider's status page

   - Many failures are transient (network timeouts, package mirror issues)

   - Retrying often succeeds



### Getting help



- **View command history**: `spawn list` shows all previous launches

- **Rerun last session**: `spawn last` or `spawn rerun`

- **Check version**: `spawn version` shows CLI version and cache status

- **Update spawn**: `spawn update` checks for the latest version

- **Report bugs**: Open an issue at https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn/issues



## Matrix



| | [Local Machine](sh/local/) | [Local Sandbox](sh/sandbox/) | [Hetzner Cloud](sh/hetzner/) | [AWS Lightsail](sh/aws/) | [DigitalOcean](sh/digitalocean/) | [GCP Compute Engine](sh/gcp/) | [Daytona](sh/daytona/) | [Sprite](sh/sprite/) |

|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|

| [**Claude Code**](https://claude.ai) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**OpenClaw**](https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**Codex CLI**](https://github.com/openai/codex) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**OpenCode**](https://github.com/anomalyco/opencode) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**Kilo Code**](https://github.com/Kilo-Org/kilocode) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**Hermes Agent**](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**Junie**](https://www.jetbrains.com/junie/) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**Cursor CLI**](https://cursor.com/cli) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**Pi**](https://pi.dev) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

| [**T3 Code**](https://github.com/pingdotgg/t3code) | ✓ | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |



### How it works



Each cell in the matrix is a self-contained bash script that:



1. Provisions a server on the cloud provider

2. Installs the agent

3. Injects your [OpenRouter](https://openrouter.ai) API key so every agent uses the same billing

4. Drops you into an interactive session



Scripts work standalone (`bash <(curl ...)`) or through the CLI.



## Development



```bash

git clone https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn.git

cd spawn

git config core.hooksPath .githooks

```



### Structure



```

sh/{cloud}/{agent}.sh     # Agent deployment script (thin bash → bun wrapper)

packages/cli/             # TypeScript CLI — all provisioning logic (bun)

manifest.json             # Source of truth for the matrix

```



### Adding a new cloud



1. Add cloud-specific TypeScript module in `packages/cli/src/{cloud}/`

2. Add to `manifest.json`

3. Implement agent scripts

4. See [CLAUDE.md](CLAUDE.md) for full contributor guide



### Adding a new agent



1. Add to `manifest.json`

2. Implement on 1+ cloud by adapting an existing agent script

3. Must support OpenRouter via env var injection



## Contributing



The easiest way to contribute is by testing and reporting issues. You don't need to write code.



### Test a cloud provider



Pick any agent + cloud combination from the matrix and try it out:



```bash

spawn claude hetzner      # or any combination

```



If something breaks, hangs, or behaves unexpectedly, open an issue using the [bug report template](https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn/issues/new?template=bug_report.yml). Include:



- The exact command you ran

- The cloud provider and agent

- What happened vs. what you expected

- Any error output



### Request a cloud or agent



Want to see a specific cloud provider or agent supported? Use the dedicated templates:



- [Request a cloud provider](https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn/issues/new?template=cloud_request.yml)

- [Request an agent](https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn/issues/new?template=agent_request.yml)

- [Request a CLI feature](https://github.com/OpenRouterLabs/spawn/issues/new?template=cli_feature_request.yml)



Requests with real-world use cases get prioritized.



### Report auth or credential issues



Cloud provider APIs change frequently. If you hit authentication failures, expired tokens, or permission errors on a provider that previously worked, please report it — these are high-priority fixes.



### Code contributions



See [CLAUDE.md](CLAUDE.md) for the full contributor guide covering shell script rules, testing, and the shared library pattern.



## License



[Apache 2.0](LICENSE)