# Poly vs Tutti VM for a team working with coding agents

Tutti shares the workspace and lets everyone bring their own agent. Poly shares the agent itself.

Published 2026-10-03 by Richard Kaminsky and Mitchell Lipyansky, the co-founders of Poly. Canonical: https://usepoly.co/poly-vs-tutti-vm
Poly is a multiplayer AI coding workspace: a shared room where your team works with one AI agent, together. Free to start: https://usepoly.co/

**Tutti VM and Poly both give a team one room to build in with AI, and they share different things. Tutti VM, in early access since August 2026, is a desktop app where each person brings their own Claude Code or Codex, running in a managed VM on their own machine, into a shared cloud room with shared files and working state; a teammate can lend you their agent, and two agents can edit the same file with conflicts coordinated automatically. Poly (usepoly.co) is a browser room where the whole team steers one AI together: every member prompts in one timeline, approves each change before it happens and gets a receipt per turn.** Tutti suits developers who each pay for an agent and want those agents working against one shared environment. Poly suits a small group, including people who don't code, steering one build.

*Poly and Tutti VM, from public documentation, October 2026.*

|  | Poly | Tutti VM |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What the team shares | One AI session, timeline, preview | A room's files, state and services |
| Several people steer one agent | Yes, any member prompts | No; each drives their own, or lends it |
| Approve before the AI acts | Yes, per change, any member | Not documented |
| Where the agent runs | Poly's per-turn sandboxes | A managed VM on each person's machine |
| Install | None; any browser | Desktop app for Mac or Windows |
| Models | Included: Claude, GPT, Grok, Kimi, Muse | Each person's own subscription |
| Availability | Open sign-up | Early access, invite codes |
| Price | Free start; $20 or $50 per AI user | Free in early access |

## What Tutti VM does

[Tutti](https://tutti.sh/en), from Hong Kong, calls itself "the first multi-user, multi-agent, real-time collaboration space." Each person's agent runs on their own machine in a managed local VM, and only working state goes to the shared room, where everyone sees every agent's activity live. To use a teammate's agent, they lend it to you, which Tutti describes as a delegation of capability, not account sharing; it stays inside the room and can be revoked. A session can also be forwarded, or a teammate mentioned, to continue it. The desktop app is open source under Apache-2.0, and there is a built-in Tutti Agent on cheaper models. Supported agents differ across Tutti's own pages: the homepage lists Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and OpenCode. It is free during early access, on your own subscriptions, with invite codes released in batches, for Mac and Windows.

## Where Tutti VM is stronger

- **No AI cost on top.** Each person uses the agent subscription they already pay for.
- **Local power.** Agents keep their local tools, credentials and data; only working state is shared.
- **Many agents at once.** Everyone's agent works in the same room in parallel.
- **Open source.** The desktop app's code is public.

## Where Poly is stronger

- **One shared agent.** In Poly the whole room prompts the same AI in one timeline. In Tutti each person drives their own, and sharing one means lending it.
- **A say before it acts.** Poly can put every proposed change on every member's screen before it happens. Tutti's pages describe no approval step.
- **Nothing to install.** A Poly room opens in any browser, on a laptop or a phone, with open sign-up. Tutti needs its desktop app and an invite code.
- **Models included, with receipts.** Claude, GPT, Grok, Kimi and Muse, no subscriptions, and a receipt per turn showing who ran it and what it cost.
- **Built for people who don't code**, with a chat the AI can't read.

## Pricing, side by side

Tutti VM: free during early access, on each person's own agent subscription; seat-based plans are planned. Poly: free to start; $20 or $50 a month for each person who runs the AI, models included, and everyone else in the room is free.

## Which should you pick?

- **Developers who each pay for Claude Code or Codex and want their agents sharing one environment:** Tutti VM.
- **A team that wants agents to keep local tools and data:** Tutti VM.
- **A small group, including people who don't code, steering one AI together with approvals and receipts:** Poly.
- **You want to start today in a browser, with no invite or install:** Poly.

More options are in [Multiplayer AI tools](/multiplayer-ai-tools).

## Common questions

**Can two people prompt the same agent in Tutti VM?**

Not as one shared session. Each person drives their own agent; a teammate can lend you theirs within the room, and a session can be forwarded for someone else to continue. In Poly every member prompts the same AI in one timeline.

**Is Tutti VM open source?**

Its desktop app is, under Apache-2.0. The shared room is Tutti's hosted service, free during early access.

**Do I need my own Claude Code or Codex subscription?**

For Tutti VM, yes: agents run on each person's own subscription, though Tutti also has a built-in agent. Poly includes the models.

More guides: https://usepoly.co/guides · Security: https://usepoly.co/security · Pricing: https://usepoly.co/pricing