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Last updated: October 27, 2026

Browse documentation · Connect an AI provider
AI models and providers

Connect an AI provider

Connect the provider this instance answers with, so every account can pick from the models it offers.

Before you start

  • You need the administrator role. Only administrators change providers.
  • Have the provider's API key, or the account you want to sign in with, ready.
  • Everything lives under Settings → <assistant name> AI. The assistant name is the brand configured for this instance.

Connect with the setup wizard

Run the wizard on the Chetty host when you prefer a guided path with a test at the end.

  1. Run elowen setup.
  2. Choose what to set up: reuse an existing connection, connect a subscription account, add an API-key provider, configure a custom OpenAI-compatible address, or install local Ollama with a model.
  3. Answer the questions. When a model is available, the wizard tests the setup with a chat.
  4. Run elowen doctor later to check provider readiness.

Connect in Settings

The Linked accounts group lists services you sign in to or connect with an account key. The AI providers group below it lists providers you add with an API key or address.

  1. Open **Settings → <assistant name> AI`.
  2. Choose Add account under Linked accounts for a sign-in or a service key.
  3. Or choose Add provider under AI providers for an API key or an address.
  4. Finish the flow on the matching guide: Connect a subscription account, Connect a key account or Add an API-key provider.

Note: Provider credentials stay on the Chetty host. Chat platforms receive the model's reply, not the key.

Read the provider list

Each provider shows its icon and name. Everything else is an icon, named when you point at it, tap it or reach it with the keyboard.

  • A dashed circle means the account is not connected yet.
  • A pause symbol means it is paused.
  • A routing icon appears while routing is on.
  • The icons of the models it offers sit under the name, with the usage bars under them.
  • Statistics and Test connection sit beside the name once an account works.

With routing off, each account of a provider is its own entry. With routing on, the accounts are listed under the provider by name, each with its state icon and usage bars. The ⋯ menu holds Settings, Add account, Delete account (on an account's entry when the provider has more than one) and Remove provider.

Open the provider settings

Settings, or a click on the provider's entry itself, opens the provider's panel on the right. Every change saves on its own.

Section What it holds
General The name, the models, and one section per account: its Active switch (off pauses it), its usage and its Spend limit where it applies.
Routing Whether Chetty picks the account by itself, the default account when it does not, and when idle conversations move to a better account.
Connection The Provider ID, the API address, the wire format and Refresh catalog.
Advanced The temperature, the compatibility options and the tool-execution switches this provider supports.

An account's ⋯ menu in General offers sign in again, edit connection, disconnect and delete account.

Tip: Provider ID is chosen once, when the provider is created, and never changes, because model references, grants and role pins name it.