CUA

What is CUA?

CUA is an open-source infrastructure project for building Computer-Use Agents—AI systems that control desktop environments. The repository describes it as “Open-source infrastructure for Computer-Use Agents — sandboxes, SDKs, and benchmarks for desktop-controlling AI.” The project is stored on GitHub under the trycua/cua repository, which shows 20,705 stars. The website at cua.ai hosts documentation and access to the project. According to the documentation, CUA includes sandbox environments where agents can be tested in isolation, software development kits (SDKs) for integrating agent capabilities into applications, and benchmark suites to evaluate agent performance. The infrastructure is designed to support development of agents that interact with desktop applications through direct control—mouse, keyboard, and screen input—rather than relying on APIs or browser-based automation.

Who is CUA for?

The documentation targets developers and researchers who need to build, test, or benchmark AI agents that operate desktop interfaces. The sandbox environments allow safe testing of agents that control the mouse, keyboard, and screen, without risking actual desktop state. The SDKs provide abstractions for common actions such as clicking, typing, and drag-and-drop. The benchmarks help compare different agent implementations on tasks like form filling, file management, or navigating software menus. The project’s open-source nature means it can be modified for specific use cases, such as automation of legacy enterprise software, testing of graphical user interfaces for accessibility, or academic research into human-computer interaction with AI. Developers building robotic process automation (RPA) tools or AI assistants that require desktop access could also use the infrastructure as a foundation.

How much does CUA cost?

CUA is free. The pricing model is listed as free with a starting price of $0 per month. The GitHub repository is public and open-source under a license that permits free use and modification. There is no paid tier or enterprise plan listed on the website or documentation. The documentation does not mention any usage limits or subscription fees. The project appears to be entirely community-driven and available at no cost, with contributions welcome through the repository. Users can download the code, run the sandboxes, and use the SDKs without payment.