Cline is an open-source AI coding agent from Cline Bot Inc. It reads the project structure, makes coordinated changes across several files, runs terminal commands and reacts to their output. In Plan mode you agree on an approach first, and in Act mode Cline carries it out; every file edit and command needs your approval unless you switch on auto-approve. Cline runs in VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf and JetBrains (early access), as a desktop app, from the command line and in CI pipelines. It is not tied to one provider: you use your own key, endpoint or local model, for example through Ollama or LM Studio.
Cline is licensed under Apache 2.0. The company, Cline Bot Inc., is based in San Francisco, so US law such as the CLOUD Act can apply to data the company itself holds. Because Cline runs locally, code and prompts go to the model provider you choose; with a local model everything stays on your own system. Check Cline's privacy policy for any telemetry, as that was not reviewed here.