Meta has acquired Conductor, the startup behind a macOS app that runs several AI coding agents at once, each in its own isolated copy of a Git project. Conductor announced the deal on November 4 and, in the same post, set a short shutdown timeline for its hosted service. The price was not disclosed, The Register reports.
Why it matters: if you use Conductor Cloud, you have about two weeks to get your work out before deletion starts. More broadly, it is another sign that the big AI companies want to own the tools developers use to manage coding agents, not just the models behind them.
The timeline
According to Conductor's announcement:
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Wed, Nov 4 | New sign-ups and app downloads stop. Free users can't upgrade. Existing Pro users keep Pro features at no charge. |
| Fri, Nov 13 | Conductor Cloud goes read-only. You can read old chats and export, but not send new messages. Active subscribers get a refund. |
| Fri, Nov 20 | Conductor Cloud shuts down and deletion of Cloud user data begins. |
| Early 2027 | The local Mac app starts to wind down. Until then it keeps getting new models and critical bug fixes. |
Conductor says all user data will be deleted when the app itself shuts down in early 2027, and that it has never sold or trained on user data.
What to do now
- Move Cloud workspaces to your Mac. Conductor says you can right-click a workspace and choose "Transfer to local" to bring it and its chats onto your machine.
- Export everything. Go to Settings → Account → Export data. Do it before November 13 if you still need to work in Cloud, and certainly before November 20.
- Push your branches. Conductor's agents work in Git copies of your project. Make sure any branch you care about is pushed to your remote, so nothing lives only inside the app.
- Check your billing. Conductor says active subscribers, including people who only just subscribed, will be refunded. Watch for it.
- Plan a replacement before 2027. The desktop app keeps working for now, but it has an end date. Running several agents in separate Git worktrees is now a common pattern, so look at which of your existing tools already supports it before you are forced to switch.
Why Meta wants it
A Meta spokesperson told The Register the deal will strengthen its developer-oriented AI capabilities, and declined to say more. The Register notes Meta recently launched its own coding agent, Muse Code, and that the company has favoured smaller AI deals since China blocked its $2 billion offer for agent developer Manus in April.
Conductor launched in July 2025. Its post is signed by co-founder and CEO Charlie Holtz and the team, who say they plan a new product, with something to release "early next year."
It also landed on a busy day for developer tooling. The Register points out that OpenAI said the same Wednesday it plans to acquire Pierre Computer Company, maker of the Code Storage service.
Who should care
- Conductor Cloud users: act this week. After November 20 your data starts being deleted.
- Desktop-only users: nothing breaks yet, but don't build new long-term workflows on an app with a wind-down date.
- Teams evaluating agent tools: this is a reminder that young AI dev tools can disappear quickly after an acquisition. Prefer tools that keep your work in plain Git and let you export easily.
Sources
- Conductor — Conductor is joining Meta conductor.build
- The Register — Meta brings Conductor on board its model train theregister.com
