iPhone-use

zhongerxin/iPhone-useReviewed by AI

What it does

An add-on for AI assistants (Codex, WorkBuddy or Doubao) that gives them control of a real iPhone connected by USB. You describe a task in plain words and the assistant opens apps, reads the page, taps, scrolls, types text and collects lists, while a side panel shows the phone screen live. It only runs on a Mac and you need the full Xcode, your own Apple developer account, Python 3.9+, Node.js 20+ and an unlocked iPhone with developer mode on. The first setup builds and signs Appium's WebDriverAgent onto the phone.

How easy it is to install

E · developers only · macOS

Mac only, and the hardest part is on the phone: the dependency table requires the full Xcode (not just Command Line Tools), an Apple account with a signing team, and building, signing and launching the WebDriverAgent app on your iPhone, plus Python, Node.js and npm. The README offers a prompt so the assistant can walk you through it, but Apple login, device trust, developer mode and signing still have to be done by hand.

Coming soon: install in 1 click with the RepoPicks app.

Numbers on GitHub

Stars: 4,811on Oct 31, 2026
Downloads: 37551 this week
Growth: +134stars in 5 days

Stars over time

Facts

Runs on: macOS
You need to install: Python, Node.js, Other tools
Disk space: not determined
Accounts or keys: None
Cost: Free, API costs extra · The code is free (MIT), but it only works inside a paid AI assistant such as Codex, WorkBuddy or Doubao.
License: MIT (Permissive)
Last update: Oct 22, 2026

Risk signals (4)

Attentiontelemetry on by default
README.md: the plugin sends anonymous usage statistics to a PostHog project and a GA4 property by default, including tool calls, connection state, timings, error categories and the identifiers of apps it launches; it can be turned off with IPHONE_USE_ANALYTICS=0 or DO_NOT_TRACK=1 (details in ANALYTICS.md).
AI review
Attentionai controls your real phone
README.md lists tools pua_tap, pua_swipe, pua_type_text, pua_launch_app and pua_batch that act directly on the connected iPhone, with examples of operating WeChat contact and chat lists. The README itself warns that a timed-out or dropped action may be left uncertain and that passwords, verification codes and Face ID must be done by the person.
AI review
Attentionphone developer mode and resigned app
README.md requires trusting the Mac, turning on developer mode on the iPhone and installing a WebDriverAgentRunner signed with your own Apple team (fixed WDA commit 16.14.0), which leaves an automation service running on the phone.
AI review
Inforeadme says repository is private
README.md states the repository is currently private and that GitHub access or a source package is needed, while the repository is in fact public with 34 releases — the instructions and the actual state of the project do not match.
AI review

Evidence is shown in its original language.

What Radar could not check

Whether the WebDriverAgent build and signing really completes with a free or personal Apple account, and on which iOS versions
Whether the live screen preview and the taps work as described on each iPhone model
What exactly is sent to PostHog and GA4 while you use it, and whether the off switch stops all of it
How much disk space the full Xcode plus the WDA build take on the Mac
The cost of the AI assistant tokens consumed by long phone tasks