{"slug": "ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-on-my", "title": "AI Questions Were Scattered Everywhere, So I Built Approval Box to Collect Approvals on My Phone", "summary": "A developer built and released Approval Box, an iPhone app that routes approval and decision requests from AI coding agents running on a PC to the user's phone, letting them answer remotely so stalled sessions can resume. The app supports Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and Grok across macOS, Windows and Linux, and is installed via an npx setup command that registers the tool with detected AI harnesses and pairs the phone by QR code. It is free to download, with a monthly plan priced at 300 yen in Japan, and the server and web version code are published on GitHub for self-hosting.", "body_md": "!\n\nThis article is a repost from [I Started Using Claude Code](https://kitepon.dev/blog/).\n\nI released an iPhone app called [Approval Box](https://kitepon.dev/products/approval-box/) on the [App Store](https://apps.apple.com/jp/app/approval-box/id6818175213). It's an app that lets you receive consultations coming from AI running on your PC on your phone, and answer them on the spot.\n\nWhen you work with AI, you end up opening a lot of sessions. I also use multiple tools (harnesses) to run AI. As development goes on—and not just development, but any kind of work—the AI in each session starts asking questions. The questions get scattered all over the place, and answering them becomes a chore.\n\nI often step away from my computer. If the AI asks a question while I'm away, that session stops and waits for an answer. Before I know it, the work has ground to a halt.\n\nApproval Box was made to solve that.\n\nWhen AI needs a human decision or approval, it submits a request to Approval Box. Requests gather in the phone app, and the subject arrives as a push notification. The app lists which AI it came from, what work it's about, whether it's urgent, and when it's due.\n\n*The inbox screen. Consultations from Claude Code, Codex, and Grok are lined up in a single list.*\n\nWhen you open a request, the background and options written by the AI appear. The AI's recommendation is marked, so you can choose while looking at it and send your answer. Besides the options, you can also write instructions in text, or attach images and documents in your reply. If you can't decide right away, you can put it on hold and answer later.\n\n*The consultation screen. Read the background, look at the AI's recommendation, choose an option, and send your answer.*\n\nThe amazing thing about this app is that once you send an answer, even sleeping sessions wake up. The answer goes straight back into the conversation of the AI that submitted the request. If the AI is working, it reaches the current turn; if it's stopped, it arrives as a new turn, and the AI continues the work from there. Answer from your phone, and the work resumes on the spot.\n\nAnother feature: the AI itself can withdraw or update an approval request. If circumstances change after submitting a request, the AI can revise the content or withdraw a request that's no longer needed. The app reflects this directly, so the list keeps only the consultations that need an answer now.\n\nIn the history, you can check whether your answer reached the AI. I also added a feature to copy a \"nudge to resume\" for when you want to continue the conversation.\n\n*The history screen. Answered consultations and whether they reached the AI are lined up.*\n\nRun the following command on your PC.\n\n```\nnpx -y approval-box@latest setup\n```\n\nIt will find the AI on your PC and register Approval Box for you. It shows you the files it will modify first, keeps a backup, and then makes the changes. After that, just scan the QR code shown on screen with the app, and your PC and phone are connected.\n\n*The add device screen. Run the command on your PC and scan the QR code with your phone.*\n\nFinally, ask the AI to \"run Approval Box's setup_test.\" A test request will arrive on your phone, so answer it, and if the answer reaches the AI, you're all set.\n\nThe supported AIs are Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and Grok, and the PC can run macOS, Windows, or Linux. The PC side requires Node.js 20 or higher.\n\nThe app can be downloaded for free, and the official service's monthly plan is 300 yen in Japan. A separate contract for the AI itself is required. There's also a [web version](https://approval-box.kitepon.dev/) you can use in a browser, and usage instructions are compiled on the [support page](https://approval-box.kitepon.dev/support). The server and web version code are published on [GitHub](https://github.com/kitepon/approval-box), so you can also host the server yourself.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-on-my", "canonical_source": "https://dev.to/quolu/ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-approvals-on-my-phone-4ig4", "published_at": "2026-10-21 02:15:34+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-10-21 02:19:31.714149+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-agents", "ai-tools", "developer-tools", "ai-products"], "entities": ["Approval Box", "Claude Code", "Codex", "Cursor", "Grok", "App Store", "GitHub", "Node.js"], "also_reported_by": [], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-on-my", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-on-my.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-on-my.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ai-questions-were-scattered-everywhere-so-i-built-approval-box-to-collect-on-my.jsonld"}}