> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://cogno.studio/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Getting started with Cogno

> A one-time setup — three accounts, the desktop app, and your Worker — and Cogno delivers your first task as a GitHub PR.

Cogno does the work for you — but first, a one-time setup connects it to your accounts and your
machine. It takes about fifteen minutes. By the end, your first task is implemented and waiting
for you as a pull request on GitHub, and Cogno runs on its own from there.

## Before you start

You'll need three accounts. If you already have them, just use those.

* **Cogno** — sign up at [app.cogno.studio](https://app.cogno.studio) with a **team email**.
* **Claude** — [claude.ai](https://claude.ai) powers the AI that summarizes your conversations,
  turns them into tasks, and writes the work. **Pro or Max** is recommended. (Codex works too —
  Claude is recommended.)
* **GitHub** — [github.com](https://github.com), where Cogno delivers its work back to you as
  **pull requests**.

Everything else — the desktop app and its setup — happens in the steps below.

## 1. Create your Cogno account

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the app">
    Go to [app.cogno.studio](https://app.cogno.studio) in your browser.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sign up">
    Create an account with **Google**, **Apple**, or **email**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Share your email (if your team has an onboarding lead)">
    Share the email address you signed up with, so your team can add you to the right workspace.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  Sign up with a **team email**, not a personal one — your workspace and access are tied to it.
</Warning>

## 2. Set up Claude and GitHub

These two accounts power the automation. If you already have them, use them.

* **Claude** — create an account at [claude.ai](https://claude.ai). It handles summarizing your
  conversations, turning them into tasks, and writing the implementation. **Pro or Max** unlocks
  full auto-implementation. (You can use **Codex** instead, but Claude is recommended.)
* **GitHub** — create a free account at [github.com](https://github.com). Cogno delivers its
  work to you as **pull requests** you review and merge.

## 3. Install the desktop app

The desktop app runs your **Worker** — the piece that actually does the work on your machine.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Download for your OS">
    Open the download page, choose your operating system, and download the app.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Install and sign in">
    Install it, then log in with your **Cogno** account.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  You'll install **Node.js** and **Claude Code** in the next step — you don't need them yet.
</Note>

## 4. Set up your Worker

The **Worker** is Cogno's execution layer: it picks up tasks and runs them. You set it up once.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Your Worker">
    From your avatar in the bottom-left corner, open **Settings**, then **Your Worker** under
    **Account**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Keep it running in the background">
    Turn on **Keep Cogno running in the background** so the Worker keeps working even when the
    window is closed.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Next you'll pick the AI tool it runs, ready its environment, and point it at a folder — all from
the same screen.

### Choose your AI tool (Add-ons)

Add-ons are the heart of the Worker — the AI tool it runs and the helpers that assist it.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Add-ons">
    From the worker card's **⋮** menu, open **Add-ons**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select Claude Code">
    Choose **Claude Code**. When it shows **Ready**, it's good to use.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enable the helpers">
    Turn on **GitHub CLI** (opens pull requests) and **Visual Capture** (attaches screenshots of
    the result).
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  You can switch to a different AI tool, such as **Codex**, at any time.
</Note>

### Ready the environment

The app checks that everything it needs is in place and walks you through anything missing — just
follow **Set up Worker environment**. When every check is green and you see **All systems
healthy**, you're ready to start.

### Start the Worker

<Steps>
  <Step title="Pick a folder and Start">
    In the worker card, choose your work folder and press **Start** (the green button).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Tune it if you want">
    From **⋮**, adjust parallelism, polling, **no-PR**, and **dry-run**.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Once running, tasks stream live and run in parallel — you'll see something like **2 / 5
running**. Watch progress in the **Event log**, and halt anytime with **Stop**.

## 5. Run your first task

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create a task">
    Open **+ Create → New Task**, enter a title, and create it. No real task in mind? Try:

    > Build a Notion-style homepage in Next.js.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign yourself">
    From **Assign**, make yourself the assignee.
  </Step>
</Steps>

With the Worker running, Cogno picks the task up and starts working on it automatically. Tasks
can also be **proposed automatically from Slack** and your other tools — see
[Connect integrations](/docs/integrations).

## 6. Review the result

<Steps>
  <Step title="See the preview">
    Cogno writes the code and shows a **preview** of the result on the task.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Check it">
    Zoom in or download the proposed design to review it.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Receive the pull request">
    When it looks good, take it as a **pull request on GitHub** — review and merge.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## You're all set

Your accounts are connected, the desktop app is running your Worker against your folder, and your
first task just came back as a pull request. From here, Cogno runs on its own — the more tools you
connect, the more tasks arrive and resolve without you lifting a finger.

## What's next

* [Connect integrations](/docs/integrations) — bring in Slack, GitHub, and more so tasks propose
  themselves.
* [Cogno AI: agents & memory](/docs/agents) — how proposals and Memory shape what the agents do.
* [What is Cogno?](/docs/introduction) — the idea behind the loop.

## Related docs

* [What is Cogno?](/docs/introduction)
* [Connect integrations](/docs/integrations)
* [Cogno AI: agents & memory](/docs/agents)