Docs / Autopilot / Quick start

Quick start

Connect a provider, pick a model, run your first task in the terminal UI, and resume a conversation later.

Start Autopilot

Run it from the root of the project you want to work on:

cd ~/code/my-project
autopilot

Connect a provider

On first run, Autopilot asks which provider to use. Providers with a key already in your environment are offered first, and that key is used without being saved.

For OpenRouter (the default), choose Sign in with OpenRouter. You approve Autopilot in your browser and a key is created for you. You can also paste a key from openrouter.ai/keys. The key is checked before it is saved.

To skip the setup screen, set a key in the environment before you start:

export OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-...
autopilot

Other providers use their own variables (for example ANTHROPIC_API_KEY or OPENAI_API_KEY). See Models and providers.

Pick a model

After connecting, pick a model. On OpenRouter the picker opens on recent, tool-capable models ranked by published agentic and coding benchmark scores. Type to fuzzy-search the full catalog. Switch at any time with /model, or set one directly:

/model anthropic/claude-sonnet-5

Give it a task

Type a request at the prompt:

› explain how requests are routed in src/server
› fix the failing test in tests/auth.test.ts
› fix the layout bug in this screenshot docs/bug.png
  • Type @ to mention a file.
  • Type / to open the command list. See Commands and shortcuts.
  • Include an image path (PNG, JPG, WebP, GIF or BMP, up to 5 MB) to have the model read it.
  • Type ! followed by a command (for example ! gh auth login) to run it yourself in the real terminal. The output is added to the conversation.

Messages sent while the agent is working

You can keep typing while a turn runs. Each message is triaged:

Kind Example What happens
interrupt "stop, that's the wrong file" The turn stops at the next safe point and your message runs next.
steer "also handle the empty case" Folded into the current task at the agent's next step.
queue "after this, update the changelog" Runs as its own turn afterwards. Send /now to run it immediately.
aside "how's it going?" Answered from the current state without disturbing the turn.

Clear phrasing is decided instantly. Ambiguous messages get a quick model check (OpenRouter only), and anything uncertain is queued.

Run one prompt and exit

Print mode streams a single answer to stdout:

autopilot -p "summarize PLAN.md"

In print mode, tool calls that need approval are denied unless you pass --dangerously-allow-all or configure permission rules.

Resume a conversation

When you exit, Autopilot prints the command to resume. You can also:

autopilot resume <id>   # a specific session
autopilot resume        # choose one from this directory
autopilot -c            # the most recent session in this directory

Inside the UI, /resume opens the same picker.

Next steps