Describe the Bug
In older versions of Cursor what I thought was a really killer feature is the fact that as soon as I open my panel to talk to the agent it auto-picks-up on my python conda env. I ask it to, for example, write a debug script which will do X, Y, Z and print this and that, then run it.
I noticed that after some version update it stopped doing this and figured its a quick fluke and will be back up again with the next update. It has been like 3-4 updates since then and it still doesnt do this anymore, what gives?
I use conda for my env management and select it through the Python Interpreter like I would in VSCode when doing things by hand as usual. This shows up in the bottom right corner of my screen as the selected env. I can run scripts with dependancies on outside libs which are installed within that env without any problems through F5 or Run Python File.
Usually what happens, when I open a new chat on the right hand side with the agent it starts running into issues where it tries to run things outside of this env then quickly defaults to either installing missing libraries through pip or making a new venv and install the things needed.
To solve this, currently, I always tell it that it should “activate” named conda env before proceeding.
When I do this, it works for every prompt that follows, but again “wipes” when I restart the app or close the agent window.
Once I select my conda env for the project, however, when doing things manually i.e. run python script, and restart cursor, it automatically knows to select the associated env which is the way VSCode does it and in my opinion the way it should be.
Switching between projects also works, it changes my conda env based on what I have set it to last time.
In my opinion the agent should follow this automatic context switching which it actually did 3 or 4 versions ago and stopped doing ever since.
Steps to Reproduce
- Create a new or clone or open an existing Python project from git or locally
- Command/Ctrl + Shift + P
- Select “Python: Select Interpreter”
- Chose an existing conda env
- Run some dummy import on a lib not available out of the box like matplotlib, that is installed in the env to verify that it works.
- Open the agent panel and ask it to run the same script (this fails unless explicitly told to activate the env)
- Close project and agent panel and re open everything (env should still be selected, work on F5 or Run but not after reopening the agent panel)
Expected Behavior
Agent internal env selection should be automatic and follow the one selected in the project, without requiring the user to prompt manually “Activate the following env: env” before continuing.
Operating System
MacOS
Current Cursor Version (Menu → About Cursor → Copy)
Version: 1.4.3
VSCode Version: 1.99.3
Commit: e50823e9ded15fddfd743c7122b4724130c25df0
Date: 2025-08-08T17:34:53.060Z (4 days ago)
Electron: 34.5.1
Chromium: 132.0.6834.210
Node.js: 20.19.0
V8: 13.2.152.41-electron.0
OS: Darwin arm64 23.6.0
Does this stop you from using Cursor
No - Cursor works, but with this issue