# Nested subagent could not be spawned in cli **URL:** \ **Category:** Bug Reports\ **Tags:** cli, subagents\ **Created:** [March 24, 2026, 4:22am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717 "2026-03-24T04:22:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Calvin\_Ng](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Calvin\_Ng](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Calvin_Ng)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2026, 4:22am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/1 "2026-03-24T04:22:20Z")
### Where does the bug appear (feature/product)? Cursor CLI ### Describe the Bug I setup multiple layers of subagents in a way which subagent (orchestrator) → subagents → finer subagents. The way I typically invoke it was through the chat window on IDE and simply say run /orchetrator-subagent with … I started to explore Cursor CLI as it’s less resource intensive but ### Steps to Reproduce Call agents that spawn subagents. works in IDE, fails on CLI. Getting an error “It immediately failed because that sequencer requires spawning additional internal subagents, and this session does not expose that subagent-spawning interface.” ### Expected Behavior Nested subagents should spawn on CLI. ### Screenshots / Screen Recordings ### Operating System MacOS ### Version Information CLI Version 2026.03.20-44cb435 ### Does this stop you from using Cursor Sometimes - I can sometimes use Cursor ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2026, 4:45am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/3 "2026-03-24T04:45:04Z")
Hey, thanks for the report and the video. Basic subagent support in the CLI was added recently, but nested subagents, where a subagent spawns other subagents, still don’t work in the CLI. The subagent CLI session doesn’t get the interface needed to start child subagents, so you hit that error. I’ve passed this to the team. No ETA yet, but your report helps us prioritize it. Workarounds for now: - For nested setups, please use the IDE like you did before. - Or try restructuring into a flat setup where the orchestrator dispatches all tasks directly via the Task tool, without a middle layer. Let me know if you have any questions. ---
**Author:** ![douglasg14b](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@douglasg14b](https://forum.cursor.com/u/douglasg14b)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2026, 9:34pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/6 "2026-03-27T21:34:38Z")
Also just noticed this problem, which breaks CLI agents compared to local ones. For instance, having CLI agents that do auto-implementation and then invoke a reviewer sub-agent, who then invokes multiple sub-reviewers, effectively breaks here. The same goes for agent teams that do work. This puts Cursor _very_ far behind things like Claude Code CLI. ---
**Author:** ![Calvin\_Ng](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Calvin\_Ng](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Calvin_Ng)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2026, 1:30pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/7 "2026-03-28T13:30:58Z")
afaik claude cli wasn’t allowed to have nested sub-agents as well, the only way is bypass through plugin. is that what you’ve been doing as well? I’d switch over if there’s an official way to do it in claude. ---
**Author:** ![douglasg14b](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@douglasg14b](https://forum.cursor.com/u/douglasg14b)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2026, 7:25pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/8 "2026-03-29T19:25:41Z")
You know that’s actually a really good call out. I use Claude Code in the workspace at work more often than I use it at home, and invoking sub-agents works in our workspace monorepo because we have a plug-in that enables it, by the looks of it. After reading the Claude Code docs, Claude Code does not actually support sub-agents invoking sub-agents natively. Putting cursor ahead in that ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Coustols](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/tom_coustols/32/97175_2.png) [@Tom\_Coustols](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Tom_Coustols)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2026, 4:32am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/9 "2026-04-14T04:32:58Z")
hey Dean, any update since that message? ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2026, 7:56am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/10 "2026-04-20T07:56:08Z")
Hey Tom. Unfortunately there are no updates since March. The ticket is still being tracked, and I can’t share an ETA. For now the options are the same: - For nested setups, use the IDE. It works there. - Or in the CLI, switch to a flat structure where the orchestrator dispatches all tasks itself via the Task tool, with no intermediate layer. As soon as there’s progress on the fix, I’ll post an update here. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Coustols](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/tom_coustols/32/97175_2.png) [@Tom\_Coustols](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Tom_Coustols)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2026, 11:08pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/11 "2026-04-20T23:08:57Z")
Thanks @deanrie ! I think the task tool is actually quite useful for this case! will play around with it! ---
**Author:** ![system](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/system/32/99069_2.png) [@system](https://forum.cursor.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2026, 11:09pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/12 "2026-05-12T23:09:30Z")
Closed on May 12, 2026, 11:09pm UTC This topic was automatically closed 22 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed. ---
**Author:** ![Colin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/colin/32/90452_2.png) [@Colin](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Colin)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2026, 1:32pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/nested-subagent-could-not-be-spawned-in-cli/155717/14 "2026-06-17T13:32:09Z")
Hey @Calvin_Ng, We’ve made a number of changes to how subagents run in the CLI since you posted — nested setups (an orchestrator that spawns subagents which spawn their own subagents) should now work on the latest version. Could you give it another try?\* 1. Update to the latest Cursor CLI 2. Run your orchestrator the same way you did before (e.g. `run /orchestrator-subagent with …`) 3. Check whether the nested subagents spawn instead of erroring out If you still hit the error, let us know and we’ll take a fresh look! cc @douglasg14b @Tom_Coustols