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← All cardsDOSSIER · Build & code · FLAGSHIP · VERIFIED 2026-06-07
Factory74FlagshipBenchmark pendingAgent-native delivery surfaceVerified 2026-06-07

Dossier · Build & code

Factory

Agent-native delivery surface · last verified 2026-06-07

FlagshipEDITOR'S PICK
Build & code
Factory
74/100
ROLEAgent-native delivery surface
Editorial fit
74
Source quality
76
Citation honesty
58
Privacy controls
40
Value for money
68
Speed
36
$20/MOPro
$100/MOPlus
$200/MOMax
FlagshipVerified 2026-06-07VP·METHOD

VERDICT HISTORY

  • Factory is the agent-native software-delivery card. It is strongest when the task is bigger than autocomplete: repo understanding, spec-planned refactors, terminal/IDE delegation, background agents, SDK use, and CI-style Droid Exec workflows. This pass adds current 2026 Factory/Droid source detail and sharpens the enterprise/security boundary.
  • Production-readiness audit pass: editorsNote and pricing/privacy checked dates confirmed. benchmarkReady remains false intentionally until Spec Mode, Droid Exec autonomy, and enterprise-control runs land.

EDITOR'S NOTE

Factory should be judged by reviewable delegated delivery: plan quality, diff quality, test behavior, command safety, and cost visibility. A strong demo is not enough if the team cannot govern the agent.

AT A GLANCE

Agent-native software development platform around Droid, with terminal, desktop, CLI, SDK, local/cloud background agents, missions, review workflows, and enterprise controls for delegated software delivery.

Role: Agent-native delivery surfaceCategory: Build & codeEditorial · hands-on

Sixteen scored dimensions, Droid surfaces from CLI to CI, Pro/Plus/Max rate-limit matrix, SDK and REST API ledger, competitive lens vs Cursor, and desk rows waiting for your agent benches.

PUBLIC FACTS · vendor & repo

List prices and pay-as-you-go entry points we can cite without running our own bench. Each tile links to a source when possible.

$20/moProfactory.ai/pricing ↗
$100/moPlusfactory.ai/pricing ↗
$200/moMaxfactory.ai/pricing ↗
$10 prepaidExtra Usage (min)docs.factory.ai/pricing ↗

Limits & product surface

Non-price vendor claims — multipliers, caps, and API scope. Detailed matrices live in subscription and SDK sections below.

Standard Usage multipliers
Plus ~5× Pro · Max ~10× Pro (rolling windows)docs.factory.ai/pricing ↗
Rate limit windows
5-hour · 7-day · 30-day rollingdocs.factory.ai/pricing ↗
Teams seat cap
Up to 150 seats (custom limits)factory.ai/pricing ↗
Autonomy levels
Off · Low · Medium · Highdocs.factory.ai auto-run ↗
REST / OpenAPI surface
Computers · Sessions · Analytics · Readinessapi.factory.ai ↗

HOW IT WORKS · agent loop

The public positioning for this product — the loop we score against on VerdictPal.

Plan in Spec Mode

Turn a plain-English goal into a reviewed plan before Droid touches files — name Spec Mode in your commit messages or PR template.

Match autonomy to risk

Start Off or Low on unfamiliar repos; Medium for installs and local commits; High only with denylists, hooks, and isolated runners.

Watch rolling limits

Run `/limits` before Missions or long autonomous sessions. Enable Droid Core or Extra Usage before deadline week, not after a block.

Automate the repeat work

Wire Droid Exec into CI for lint fixes, import sorting, and PR review — keep interactive CLI for exploratory refactors.

METRIC LAB · 16 DIMENSIONS

Click a tile for the editorial note. Color follows score: coral, yellow, mint.

Shape

Avg 74 · 58–86

74Editorial fit

Fits agentic delivery stacks; not a student essay tool or cited research front door.

By group

Fit70
  • Editorial fit74
  • IDE familiarity62
  • Context portability77
  • Onboarding curve58
  • Readiness analytics79
Cost70
  • Value for money68
  • Rate limit clarity71
Trust74
  • Enterprise controls86
  • Autonomy safety73
  • Sandbox maturity65
  • Escape hatches72
Workflow80
  • Agent orchestration82
  • CI / headless fit85
  • Code review depth76
  • BYOK flexibility80
  • Model routing78

SEARCH MODES · 8 lenses

One input box, many retrieval postures. Filter by tier.

01Pro

Droid CLI

Interactive terminal agent — default surface for power users

02Pro

Factory App

Desktop app with usage dashboard and Droid Computers management

03Pro

Droid Exec

Headless runs for CI/CD — lint fixes, reviews, doc sync

04Pro

Spec Mode

Read-only planning before implementation — Shift+Tab in CLI

05Max

Factory Missions

Multi-feature orchestration — requires High autonomy and Extra Usage enabled

06Pro

Droid Control

Browser, terminal, and desktop automation for QA and demos

07Pro

Local /review

AI code review on local diffs before you open a PR

08Pro

IDE integrations

VS Code, JetBrains, Zed — Droid inside the editor via ACP

BENCHMARK LEDGER

Public rows are vendor or third-party claims we logged with a date. Desk rows are reserved for VerdictPal self-run results.

MeasureResultSource
Pro subscription20 USD / mofactory.ai/pricing
Plus subscription100 USD / mofactory.ai/pricing
Max subscription200 USD / mofactory.ai/pricing
Plus Standard Usage5 × Pro (vendor)docs.factory.ai/pricing
Max Standard Usage10 × Pro (vendor)docs.factory.ai/pricing
Extra Usage minimum10 USD prepaiddocs.factory.ai/pricing
Teams seat cap150 seats maxfactory.ai/pricing
Short rolling window5 hoursdocs.factory.ai/pricing
Weekly rolling window7 daysdocs.factory.ai/pricing
Monthly rolling window30 daysdocs.factory.ai/pricing

INDIVIDUAL SUBSCRIPTION · checked 2026-06-07

Plan matrix

Individual plans from factory.ai/pricing and docs.factory.ai/pricing May 2026. Standard Usage draws from rolling 5-hour, weekly, and monthly windows. Teams and Enterprise are exempt from consumer rate-limit changes per vendor docs.

CapabilityFreeProMax
Standard Usage (rolling)—BaselinePlus ~5× · Max ~10×
Droid Computers (managed cloud)——Plus & Max
Cloud background agents—YesYes
Agent-readiness dashboard—YesYes
Droid Core fallback—YesYes
Extra Usage (prepaid)—Optional · $10 minOptional · $10 min
Early feature access——Max tier
ZDR · SSO · SCIM—Teams+Teams+

factory.ai plans for Droid across CLI, desktop app, and cloud agents. Standard Usage is consumed first; Droid Core and Extra Usage are fallbacks documented separately. Plus and Max expand rolling rate limits — not a separate product surface.

Desk pick

Pro

$20/mo

Monthly subscription

  • CLI · Factory App · SDK access
  • Cloud and local background agents
  • Usage statistics and Agent Readiness dashboard
  • Rolling 5h / weekly / monthly Standard Usage windows
  • Droid Core fallback when Standard Usage exhausts

Plus

$100/mo

Monthly subscription

  • Everything in Pro
  • ~5× Standard Usage rate limits vs Pro
  • Factory-managed Droid Computers (remote cloud environments)
  • For daily Missions and long autonomous sessions

Max

$200/mo

Monthly subscription

  • Everything in Plus
  • ~10× Standard Usage rate limits vs Pro
  • Early access to new Factory features
  • Par price with Cursor Ultra — compare orchestration vs IDE polish

Teams (up to 150 seats, custom limits, SSO, ZDR) and Enterprise (unlimited seats, on-prem, audit logs, dedicated compute) are contact-sales. Teams/Enterprise plans are not affected by consumer rate-limit changes per vendor docs.

SDK & REST API · checked 2026-06-07

Factory exposes Droid programmatically via SDK, Droid Exec, and REST APIs (Computers, Sessions, Analytics, Readiness). Session APIs are gated to selected organizations per docs — verify access before courseware assignments.

Pro includes SDK

Bundled with Pro+

Same Standard Usage pool

  • Droid SDK for embedded agent workflows
  • Droid Exec for GitHub Actions and headless automation
  • OpenAPI at api.factory.ai/api/v0/openapi.json
  • Analytics API for org usage and productivity metrics

Extra Usage

From $10 prepaid

Pay-as-you-go credits

  • Kicks in when Standard Usage exhausts (if enabled)
  • Credits never expire per vendor FAQ
  • Sticky toggle — enable once until off or depleted
  • Required for Factory Missions when limits approach

Endpoints · 5 routes

POST/computers

Create persistent Droid Computer environments

GET/computers

List org computers — managed and BYOM

POST/sessions

Create agent session (selected orgs only per docs)

GET/analytics/usage

Org-level credits, tool usage, productivity metrics

CLIdroid exec

Headless mode — `--auto low|medium|high` for CI edits

BYOK usage includes a free allowance on all plans; overage billed per plan terms. Never commit API keys — use org secret stores and Droid Shield on pushes.

Atlas bundle string · checked 2026-06-07

  • Pro $20/mo. Existing desk notes list Plus $100/mo, Max $200/mo, Teams custom, and Enterprise custom. Current Factory pricing snippets show Pro includes desktop/CLI/SDK, cloud and local background agents, billing/usage statistics, and an agent-readiness dashboard.

RESEARCH LOG · desk notes

What we learned while building this dossier — not vendor copy.

docs.factory.ai/pricing ↗

Three independent rolling windows

Standard Usage is capped across 5-hour, 7-day, and 30-day rolling windows that reset from first use — hitting one window blocks requests even if others have headroom. `/limits` is the operational command students should know.

docs.factory.ai/pricing ↗

Missions require Extra Usage enabled

Factory Missions share the same rate limits as interactive sessions and pause on limit errors. Vendor docs recommend running Missions on Droid Core when possible to stretch quota.

docs.factory.ai auto-run ↗

Missions need High autonomy

Missions orchestration requires High autonomy or `--skip-permissions-unsafe` (explicitly marked unsafe in docs). Syllabus should forbid the unsafe flag outside isolated sandboxes.

factory.ai/pricing + cursor.com/pricing ↗

Pro and Max price-match Cursor tiers

Factory Pro ($20) and Max ($200) align with Cursor Pro and Ultra list prices — the fork is agent orchestration vs IDE-native editing, not entry cost.

COMPETITIVE LENS

Where Factory wins for cited research — and where a rival still belongs in the stack.

Cursor is the AI-native VS Code fork students already know for tab-complete and inline edits. Factory is the agent delivery platform for delegated multi-file work, CI automation, and enterprise controls — pick Cursor for daily typing, Factory when the unit of work is a refactor, Mission, or pipeline.

Factory

  • Droid Exec and GitHub Actions patterns for headless CI
  • Factory Missions for multi-feature orchestration
  • Agent Readiness dashboard and /readiness-report
  • Enterprise on-prem, ZDR, OTEL, and hierarchical org controls
  • Explicit Autonomy Off–High with command denylists

Cursor

  • Full VS Code fork — familiar keybindings and extension ecosystem
  • Privacy Mode story is simpler for individual developers
  • Student Pro free for 12 months (cursor.com/students)
  • Lower mid-tier price: Cursor Pro+ $60 vs Factory Plus $100
  • Faster payoff for inline autocomplete without CLI setup

UNDER THE HOOD

Vendors named on the product about page — useful for procurement and privacy reviews.

Agent runtime
Factory Droid
Surfaces
CLI · App · SDK · Droid Exec
Models
Factory-hosted · BYOK · Droid Core pool
Integrations
GitHub · Slack · Linear · MCP
Enterprise security
Droid Shield · Prisma AIRS (Shield Plus)
Open source
No public platform fork

DEEP PANES · 9 LENSES

Editorial lenses only. Subscription and API pricing live in their own sections above.

Lens 01

Droid CLI

The default power-user surface. Install with the curl one-liner, run `droid`, and treat Autonomy Level as a syllabus-visible safety knob — not a bragging-rights setting.

Install
curl -fsSL https://app.factory.ai/cli | sh
Limit check
/limits command
  • Ctrl+L cycles Off → Low → Medium → High → Off
  • Shift+Tab toggles Auto vs Spec Mode
  • Start new repos at Low until AGENTS.md and hooks exist

TEST SCENARIOS · hands-on lab

How we exercised the product. Step through each run before you trust the scores.

Test run

Step 1 of 5

Open an unfamiliar repo branch and set Autonomy to Low.

BEST FOR

  • Multi-step refactors, migrations, and repo tasks where Spec Mode planning beats one-shot chat edits
  • Teams wiring Droid Exec, review flows, and background agents into delivery workflows
  • Engineering orgs that need SSO, ZDR/on-prem/data-residency-style controls, auditability, and model flexibility
  • Developers who want agents inside existing terminal/IDE workflows rather than a separate editor-only experience

AVOID IF

  • You only want lightweight VS Code autocomplete
  • You enable high autonomy or missions on production repos without tests, hooks, command denylists, or sandbox review
  • You assume $20 Pro equals unlimited premium-model agent work
  • Your team cannot review diffs, execution traces, and generated plans before merging

STRENGTHS

  • Droid CLI
  • terminal UI
  • desktop app
  • SDK
  • cloud/local background agents
  • Spec Mode
  • missions
  • persistent sessions
  • slash commands
  • skills
  • MCP
  • hooks
  • plugins
  • model flexibility
  • enterprise controls

WEAKNESSES

  • Autonomous runs can burn rate limits or spend
  • Spec plans can miss cross-package contracts
  • Fallback models can regress on subtle refactors
  • Command execution needs sandboxing/tests/approval
  • Enterprise claims need trust-center verification

HOW IT COULD IMPROVE

  • Extracted values that require manual verification suggest the extraction pipeline needs a confidence-checking layer, cross-reference extracted claims against the original passage before presenting them as fact.

EDITORIAL EVIDENCE · 4 ENTRIES

TASK

Run a cross-package refactor with tests and compare plan, diff, missed contracts, and rollback path.

Existing desk test caught a missed barrel export; rerun with current Droid.

↳ Pending benchmark row from Notion.

TASK

Run headless lint/test repair against a known failing repo.

Existing desk run fixed most lint issues; human judgment still required.

↳ Pending benchmark row from Notion.

TASK

Compare low/medium/high autonomy on a repo with command denylists and hooks.

Pending.

↳ Pending benchmark row from Notion.

TASK

Verify ZDR/on-prem/data residency/audit/SOC2 controls against trust-center artifacts.

Pending.

↳ Pending benchmark row from Notion.

PRIVACY DEEP-DIVE · checked 2026-06-07

Factory privacy policy last updated 2026-04-29. It says Factory may process contact details, login/device data, analytics/support/marketing data, plus code-repository metadata such as repo/project names, code files, GitHub/GitLab file URLs, and commits when GitHub/GitLab is integrated on the web platform and remote containers are used. Personal data is primarily stored on AWS US West; archive deletion may take up to 10 years after last use unless contract terms differ.

Training on your dataNot stated
EU data residencyNot documented
SOC 2 attestationNot documented
Local-first by defaultCloud only

WORKFLOW ROLES

How this tool fits into a composed research stack:

agentic codingdelivery automation

QUALITY GATE · FLAGSHIP

Evidence ready
Benchmark pending
  • Flagship in git 2026-05-30. Editorial synced.
  • Next action: Run refreshed Spec Mode, Droid Exec, autonomy-safety, and enterprise-control benchmarks.
  • Has API: true
  • Public recommendation: false
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