Amp Equips AI Agents with Cloud-Based Macs: Boot in 30 Seconds, Compile and Test iOS Apps Independently

Beating AI Express News: AI coding tool Amp has launched macOS Satellites, enabling AI Agents originally running in Linux cloud environments to call a Mac on demand to automatically compile, run, and test iOS and macOS apps. The cloud Mac comes pre-installed with Xcode and simulators, with the company stating it boots up in about 30 seconds. Agents continue modifying code on Linux, only invoking the Mac when compilation and testing are required. Test screens, logs, and screen recordings are sent back to Amp, and users can also directly take over the Mac desktop to operate apps manually. Amp previously attempted running entire Agents on Macs, but Docker and backend services took minutes to start, and reserving Mac disk space for each task was prohibitively expensive. The company now uses a two-machine division of labor: Linux handles daily development, while Macs only process tasks dependent on macOS. The cloud Mac offers two configuration tiers: 6-core CPU, 14GB RAM for $2 per hour; 12-core CPU, 28GB RAM for $4 per hour. After a task concludes, the Mac remains active for 20 minutes to allow continued use of compilation caches; billing continues during this period based on runtime, after which the Mac is automatically terminated. The feature is currently in Beta and requires joining a waitlist.