Zed

Use Factory Droid as a custom AI agent inside Zed, with full MCP server support.

Setup

Before wiring Zed to Factory Droid, make sure you have Zed installed. Afterwards:

1. Install the Factory Droid extension.
2. Open the Agent Panel.
3. Click the + button in the top-right corner.
4. In the agent dropdown, select Factory Droid.
5. If you are unauthenticated you will see a message indicating you must authenticate.

   1. Keep track of the device code rendered, and click the “Login” button.

      

   2. This will open your web browser and ask you to login/signup to Factory, followed by a screen to confirm your device’s code.

      

(Alternative) Manual Setup

If you prefer to manually configure Droid inside Zed, you can follow the instructions below.

1. Factory CLI installed (supported on all operating systems except Windows ARM machines)

   • Install via:

     curl -fsSL https://app.factory.ai/cli | sh
     

   • Ensure droid is on your PATH, or note its full path.

2. Zed installed

   • Zed on macOS, Linux, or x86_64 Windows.
   • Access to ~/.config/zed/settings.json.

3. (Optional) Factory API key - instead of using the login flow, you can set up an API key:

   • Sign up at https://app.factory.ai.
   • Configure billing if required.
   • Create an API key at https://app.factory.ai/settings/api-keys.
   • Set the FACTORY_API_KEY environment variable in your shell (for example, add export FACTORY_API_KEY=your_key_here to your shell profile).

You cannot create a Factory account or manage billing from inside Zed. All account setup happens in the Factory web app.

Configure Factory Droid as an Agent (agent_servers)

Edit ~/.config/zed/settings.json and add a Factory Droid entry under agent_servers:

"agent_servers": {
  "Factory Droid": {
    "type": "custom",
    "command": "*path/to/droid/cli*",
    "args": ["exec", "--output-format", "acp"]
  }
}

• type: "custom" – tells Zed this is a user-defined agent
• command – full path to the droid binary
• args – run Droid in exec mode and speak ACP to Zed

If you prefer to use an API key instead of the login flow, add an env block:

"agent_servers": {
  "Factory Droid": {
    "type": "custom",
    "command": "*path/to/droid/cli*",
    "args": ["exec", "--output-format", "acp"],
    "env": {
      "FACTORY_API_KEY": "$FACTORY_API_KEY"
    }
  }
}

Start a Droid Session in Zed

Once agent_servers and context_servers are configured, you can start chatting with Droid from the Agent Panel.

Open the Agent Panel

• macOS: Cmd + ?
• Linux/Windows: Ctrl + ?

Start a New Chat with Factory Droid

1. Open the Agent Panel.
2. Click the + button in the top-right corner.
3. In the agent dropdown, select Factory Droid.
4. Start chatting.

Resume Existing Sessions

Zed does not currently provide a way to reload or restore past Factory Droid sessions from the Agent Panel.

• Each Agent Panel conversation is effectively a fresh session.
• For longer work streams, keep the panel open or start new chats with a brief recap so Droid can quickly reorient.

Editor Context and Limitations

There is no dedicated Factory Droid plugin for Zed yet, but Zed supports @-tagging files inside agent chats.

• Use @ to reference relevant files when you ask Droid to inspect or modify code.
• Combine @-tags with plain-language instructions, just as you would in the CLI.

Example:

Refactor the state management in @src/components/TodoList.tsx to use a reducer instead of multiple useState hooks.

Models and Autonomy

Model selection and autonomy behavior inside Zed follow the same rules as the Droid CLI.

• Choose your model and reasoning level using the same patterns described in Choosing Your Model.
• Use lower autonomy for planning and higher autonomy once you trust the plan.
• Zed supports Shift+Tab for switching autonomy modes, matching the default shortcut in the Droid CLI.

(Optional) Configure MCP Servers (context_servers)

Zed’s context_servers section is where you configure MCP servers. Each entry is a real MCP server that exposes tools and context, which Factory Droid can call while you chat.

For example, to add a Chrome DevTools MCP server:

"context_servers": {
  "chrome-devtools": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y", "chrome-devtools@latest"]
  }
}

• chrome-devtools – server name used inside Zed
• command – executable to run (here, npx)
• args – how to launch the MCP server; update the package name to the actual server you want to use

You can define multiple MCP servers under context_servers for internal tools, data sources, or other services.

When you chat with Factory Droid in Zed, it can call any of these MCP servers as tools.

Troubleshooting

If Factory Droid does not appear or respond in Zed:

• Verify the CLI:
  • Run droid exec --output-format acp in a regular terminal to ensure the CLI and API key work.
• Check settings.json:
  • Confirm the agent_servers and context_servers blocks are valid JSON (including commas and quotes).
  • Ensure the command and args for both Droid and your MCP servers run successfully outside Zed.
• Confirm your OS:
  • Make sure you are not running on Windows on ARM.

If an MCP server is failing, try launching it manually with the same command and args used in context_servers to debug configuration or dependency issues.