Your first chat

From a fresh browser to a model replying, in four steps.

Prerequisites

You need	Why
One API key, from one AI service	Big-AGI calls the AI services you connect, using your key.
Credit on that service account	A key with no credit connects and returns nothing.

That key comes from the service's API console. That account is separate from any consumer chat subscription you pay for - the two bills.

Running your own instance: install it first, then rejoin at step 3. Or at step 4, if its environment already carries keys (keys and access control).

1. Launch the app

Load app.big-agi.com, or your instance's address, in a modern browser. Sign in - Free is enough.

2. Get a key

Pick one AI service: use a key you already have, or create one there. Some services are aggregators - OpenRouter, or NVIDIA NIM, which is free. Others are first-party model vendors. Connect models walks each console. One key is enough; come back with it on your clipboard.

3. Paste the key

The setup panel opens by itself on a fresh workspace; Ctrl+Shift+M reopens it any time.

1. Find your AI service under Popular. Local covers model servers on your machine, More Services everything else.
2. Paste the key into that service's API key field; a Save button appears.
3. Press Save: it stores the key and refreshes the model list. The vendor icon then carries a count - tooltip N ... models available.
4. Press Done, and you are back in the chat.

4. Ready to chat!

Type into the composer at the bottom - or speak, attach files, or drop them. Enter sends; Shift + Enter adds a line. The model dropdown in the top bar starts on Auto, a curated pick per job - change the model there any time (model settings).

Tour of the screen

Four vertical bands: navigation rail, conversation drawer, the chat, an optional right-hand panel. The six regions:

1. Navigation rail (far left) - the apps: chat, personas, voice calls, ramble; at the bottom, App Preferences (Ctrl+,) and your account.
2. Drawer - conversations, folders, and the storage banner.
3. Top bar - contextual; in the chat it sets the title, the persona, and the model.
4. Composer - text box, file attach and drop, send. The Beam button next to send: one prompt to several models at once (your first Beam).
5. Message label - the model name above each reply; hover to reveal token usage, cost, and speed.
6. Split pane - up to four conversations, side by side or stacked; Ctrl+Shift+) toggles the right-hand panel.

Full sheet: Ctrl+Shift+? (Ctrl+Shift+/ on macOS). Three worth knowing from day one:

• Alt + Enter (Option + Enter on macOS) posts your message without requesting a reply - write both sides of a conversation, or prime the context, then send.
• Ctrl + Up and Ctrl + Down step to the previous or next message or Beam.
• Holding Shift skips a delete confirmation, app-wide: chats, messages, attachments.

If this browser is wiped

Your chats go with it. Clearing site data, a reset profile or a new laptop erases them, with no server copy. The drawer says so, permanently: Chats are saved only in this browser. Export important chats to keep a backup. Dismissing that banner takes typing I understand. Make one file today, from Export at the drawer's bottom:

Button	What you get
Backup All Chats	Chats only. The file to repeat regularly.
Export All	Settings and chats, with Include Models & Settings on by default. Carries your API keys - store it like a password.

Restore replaces rather than merges - mechanics: back up, restore and import.

Related

• Connect an AI service
• Back up, restore and import
• Your first Beam
• Open, Free, or Pro