Connecting an AI Provider, explained plainly
Every field in the Connect Provider dialog, what it means, and a real example — written for your first connection.
This page explains the "Connect an AI provider" dialog field by field, in plain language — written for anyone setting up their first connection.
What is an AI Provider, in Genesis?
Genesis itself does not generate AI responses — it connects to a company that does. An AI Provider connection is that link: which company, which account, and which server to send requests to. Every AI Team, Blueprint, and Mission in Genesis ultimately routes through a connection you set up here.
Important distinction: connecting a provider here uses that company's API (a billed, developer-facing interface) — not their free consumer website. Having a free ChatGPT.com or Claude.ai account does not give you free access here; see "Is Anything Free?" below for what actually is free.
Provider Types — Who Are These Companies?
OpenAI
The company behind ChatGPT. This option connects to their API — the same GPT models ChatGPT uses, accessed programmatically instead of through the chat website.
Anthropic
The company behind Claude (the assistant that helped build this platform). Same relationship as above — API access to the Claude models, not the claude.ai website.
Connects to Google's Gemini models via their API — not the gemini.google.com chat app.
Custom (OpenAI-Compatible)
For everything else that speaks the same request format OpenAI uses: Ollama (run models on your own computer, free), OpenRouter, Groq, Together AI, DeepSeek, or any self-hosted gateway. One connection type covers all of these.
Plan Types — Whose Key Is This?
| Plan type | Whose credential is used | Who pays the provider |
|---|---|---|
| Bring your own key | The key you type into this dialog | You (or your workspace) |
| Genesis managed | Genesis's own account, shared across users — nothing to type | Genesis, who then bills usage back through your Genesis subscription |
| Enterprise | A dedicated key, negotiated separately | Per your organization's agreement |
Note: Genesis managed is only offered for OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google — not for Custom connections, since Genesis has no relationship with an arbitrary, self-hosted endpoint you configure yourself.
Every Field, Explained
| Field | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Provider type | Which company/format to connect to. | Custom (OpenAI-Compatible) |
| Provider name | A label so you can tell connections apart later. | Ollama (local) |
| Plan type | Whose credential and billing (see table above). | Bring your own key |
| API key | The password-like credential for that endpoint. | sk-abc123… (blank for Ollama) |
| Base URL | The server address requests are sent to. | http://localhost:11434/v1 |
| Default model | Which model to use if a Blueprint doesn't specify one. | llama3 |
| Description | A free-text note for your own reference. | Home server, GPU 3090 |
| Organization (optional) | An org ID some providers use for multi-team billing. | org-abc123 |
| Priority | Order of preference if you have several connections. Lower = tried first. | 100 |
| Timeout (s) | How long to wait for a response before giving up. | 30 |
| Max tokens | The longest a single response is allowed to be. | 2048 |
| Temperature | Creativity/randomness — 0 is precise, 2 is very random. | 0.7 |
| Headers (JSON) | Extra HTTP headers some gateways require. | {"X-Api-Key": "..."} |
| Notes | Any other free-text reminder. | Backup — use if OpenAI hits its limit |
Is Anything Actually Free?
This is the single most common point of confusion, so here it is directly: a free account on ChatGPT.com, Claude.ai, or gemini.google.com does not work here. Those are consumer chat websites; this dialog only ever talks to a provider's paid, developer API.
Not usable here, free or not
ChatGPT.com, Claude.ai, gemini.google.com free tiers — these are websites, not APIs.
Genuinely free options that work here
Ollama — run a model on your own machine, no cost at all. Some OpenRouter models are free (rate-limited). Use "Custom (OpenAI-Compatible)" for either.
Frequently Asked Questions
I have ChatGPT Plus — can I use that? No. ChatGPT Plus is a subscription to the website. You'd need a separate OpenAI API key, billed separately, even if you already pay for ChatGPT Plus.
What's the difference between Base URL for OpenAI vs. Custom? OpenAI/Anthropic/Google have a fixed, built-in address — you never see or set it. Custom is for endpoints Genesis doesn't know about in advance, so you provide the address yourself.
Do I need to fill in every field? No — only Provider type, Plan type, and (for Custom) Base URL are required. Everything else has a sensible default or can be left blank.