Anthropic Cowork feature creates 10GB VM bundle on macOS without warning

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

VM-based Cowork design & rationale

  • Claude Cowork on macOS/Windows runs inside a Linux VM via Apple’s Virtualization framework or Microsoft’s Host Compute System.
  • Stated goals:
    • Give the model its “own computer” to freely install tools and run scripts without touching the host.
    • Strong isolation guarantees versus lighter sandboxing (containers, seatbelt, etc.).
    • Reduce risk for non-technical users who can’t safely vet arbitrary commands and suffer from “approval fatigue.”
  • Some commenters see this as the right tradeoff for “agents” and regulated environments; others argue containers or alternate sandboxes could suffice.

Storage, performance, and UX complaints

  • Cowork creates a ~10 GB VM bundle on macOS (and similar on Windows) without an explicit warning.
  • Users report:
    • Surprise at the disk usage, especially on small SSDs or metered connections.
    • The VM image starting mostly full, leaving little room for tasks; it can fill up and break Cowork.
    • VM RAM usage and power draw even when Cowork is disabled.
  • Some workarounds: delete or resize the VM bundle, move/symlink to other disks, or avoid the desktop app and use the web.
  • Many want:
    • A clear prompt before downloading/creating the VM.
    • A one-click way to remove or relocate it.
    • Options to disable Cowork, use a lighter sandbox, or restrict host filesystem access to chosen folders.

Broader macOS disk-usage frustration

  • Thread broadens into complaints about opaque “System Data” and aggressive caching (Docker/Podman VMs, Time Machine snapshots, Podcasts, Messages, Photos).
  • Tools like ncdu, GrandPerspective, DaisyDisk, and others are recommended to find large, hidden directories.
  • Some note SIP and permissions make it hard to even see or delete certain files and snapshots.

Quality, development practices, and “vibe coding”

  • Several users praise the models and Claude Code CLI, but describe desktop apps/Cowork as buggy, resource-heavy, and shipped “too fast.”
  • Concerns that parts of the product and even GitHub issues themselves are “vibe coded” or AI-generated, leading to misleading bug reports.
  • Others counter that VM isolation and fast iteration are acceptable tradeoffs, especially for non-expert users and SMBs, but call for better diagnostics (“doctor” tools) and error messaging.