Start here to install Cuttlefish, connect the models you want, set things up for yourself or your team, and keep control of your data. Every guide below is a real path, not a list of links — pick the one that fits what you're trying to do.
Cuttlefish is a desktop app you install once and open like any other program. Download it, open it, sign in, and connect a model — then you're chatting, building, and browsing. New here? Walk it end to end and try the things worth doing first.
Get the version that matches your computer — Windows, macOS, or Linux — and install it the usual way. The website highlights the right download for the machine you're on, so the obvious button is almost always the one you want. Updates arrive on their own afterward; you check for them from inside Settings whenever you like.
The first time you open Cuttlefish you land on Home — the main conversation — with five tabs across the top: Home, Workspace, Browser, Apps, and Settings. That's the whole product. Try a normal question in Home, build something small in Workspace, and you'll have the shape of it in about half an hour.
Sign in the first time you open the app; after that Cuttlefish remembers you and goes straight to your workspace. To approve things while you're away from your desk, pair the phone companion from Settings — your computer shows a code, your phone enters it, and the two are linked end to end. The desktop app is the full product; the phone is there for approvals on the go.
Open Settings, choose a provider, and paste in your key — or point Cuttlefish at a model running privately on your own machine. There's a test step so you know the connection works before you save. One working model is enough to do everything; add more whenever you want and switch between them.
Beyond the basics, a few minutes of setup makes the day-to-day smoother: build and keep your own apps, connect the tools you already use, and manage your subscription from one place.
Describe what you want in plain words and Cuttlefish builds it on a canvas — a document, a page, a dashboard, a small tool — previewed live in a walled-off space you can experiment in freely. When something you built is worth keeping, turn it into a real app that lives in your Apps library and opens like any other tool, with the ability to roll back to an earlier version.
Link the services you already rely on — your code, your cloud accounts, and more — with guided setup from the Apps tab. Pair local tools to a private on-device connection, or connect remote tools through a governed one. Connecting a tool doesn't hand anything over; Cuttlefish only does what you've allowed, and you can change or remove a connection any time.
Manage your subscription, invoices, receipts, payment method, and cancellation from the billing section in Settings. Your account is the same you across every device — sign in on the desktop, pair your phone, and your settings, connections, and work carry over.
Cuttlefish for teams is the same product with the controls a workplace needs layered on top — not a separate tool. Admins claim a domain, set up single sign-on, and invite people, all with clear visibility and proof of every action. Start at the enterprise setup guide.
Connect your organization's domain so the right people land in the right place when they sign in, and so admins can govern who gets access. This is the first step in standing up a team workspace, and it sets the boundary everything else sits inside. Walk it through on the enterprise setup page.
Wire Cuttlefish to your existing identity provider so people sign in with the credentials they already use, and access follows your directory. It's the foundation for clean onboarding and offboarding across a team. See how it fits the broader admin picture under Enterprise.
Send invitations, set who can do what, and keep an audit trail of actions across the workspace. People share work, models, browsers, files, and internal systems in one place, while admins keep visibility and proof. A person can start solo and a team can grow on the exact same tool.
Most AI apps give you one company's model in their box. Cuttlefish works the other way: bring the models you like, pick the one that fits each task, and change your mind whenever you want.
Connect ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and others — including xAI, DeepSeek, Mistral, and Groq — by adding your own key in Settings. There's no "house" model you're pushed toward and no limit on how many you add. When you connect a provider, Cuttlefish finds the models available to you automatically, so your list stays current.
Point Cuttlefish at a model running on your own computer through Ollama, LM Studio, or your own private setup. When you use one, the whole exchange — your words and the answer — stays on your machine and never leaves it. Local models perform remarkably well here, so this is a real way to work for anything you'd rather keep close.
The model picker sits right where you work. Start a chat with one model, then switch to another for the next reply without losing your place — the thread keeps going, only the mind behind it changes. Use a cloud model for one task and a local one for the next, on the same day, in the same workspace.
Your data stays where you put it, nothing consequential happens without your okay, and every real action leaves a plain record. You don't configure any of this to feel safe — it's on from the first time you open the app.
Local stays local — nothing goes to an AI provider's servers unless you choose a model that runs there. Your saved keys are kept in your computer's secure store, not in plain text. Read the full picture on the privacy page.
Day-to-day things — answering, drafting, reading a page — just flow. Anything with real consequences pauses and shows you a clear card: allow it, deny it, change what it's allowed to do, or run a safe trial first. You decide what Cuttlefish can do, and you can take it back. See how this is built into the product at the trust center.
Cuttlefish keeps a plain, tamper-proof record of what it used, what it changed, who approved it, and where the result went — readable in clear terms whenever you want to check. For the security posture behind it, see the security review.
Most issues are quick to sort out. Report a problem with redacted details straight from the app, check whether a hiccup is on our side, or reach a person for sign-in, billing, or setup help.
Open Settings, then the Help and Support section, and copy redacted report details to share with us — your keys, tokens, and file contents stay out of it. This gives support what they need to help without exposing anything private. Then send it along from the support page.
If something feels slow or unavailable, check whether it's a known issue on our side before digging in. The status page lists the parts of the service and where to follow updates, so you can tell a local snag from a wider one.
For failed sign-in, expired invites, billing questions, or enterprise setup problems, the support page routes you to the right mailbox. Evaluating Cuttlefish for a team? Start a conversation through contact sales.
Quick answers for anyone arriving from ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini. These cover the things people wonder about before they download.
Those apps give you their model, in their window, on their servers. Cuttlefish gives you your workspace: you pick any model and switch it mid-conversation, you can run one entirely on your own machine, and it works with a real built-in browser and your actual files and apps — not a sealed chat box. It can also keep working on lasting tasks and report back, instead of waiting for your next message.
No. You talk to Cuttlefish in plain language, the same way you would with any AI assistant. When it builds something for you — a document, a page, a small tool — you describe what you want and watch it appear. You never have to read or write code.
Yes. When you use a model that runs on your computer, the entire exchange stays on your machine and never leaves it. Nothing is sent to an outside provider unless you choose a model that runs there, and your saved connections are kept in your computer's secure store.
Install Cuttlefish, connect a model, and start your first conversation — or talk to us about bringing it to a team.