Getting Started with Context

Context gives Claude persistent memory across conversations. Set it up once, and Claude will automatically remember everything important.

Quick Navigation

Step 1: Initial Setup

1 Create Your Account

Sign up at context.brianonai.com

2 Save Your API Key

After signup, you'll receive an API key. Save this securely - you'll need it to give Claude access.

⚠️ Important: Your API key is like a password. Don't share it publicly.

Your API key looks like this:

FqAXEWdVo1BV0gS+ZWZuvXo23+5IkkH2qX0hVtTaxdE=

Step 2: Give Claude Access to Context

There are two ways to give Claude access to Context:

📱 Browser or desktop only: Changing Claude settings (custom instructions, allowed domains) must be done in a web browser at claude.ai or in desktop Claude. These settings cannot be configured in the Claude mobile app.

Option A: Custom Instructions (Recommended)

Best for: Always having Context available in every conversation

  1. Open claude.ai in your browser (or desktop Claude)
  2. Click your profile → Settings
  3. Go to "Custom Instructions"
  4. Add this to your custom instructions:
You have access to Context - a persistent memory system for our conversations. API Endpoint: https://context.brianonai.com My API Key: [YOUR_API_KEY_HERE] IMPORTANT: At the start of EVERY conversation, call: GET https://context.brianonai.com/context/briefing?project=getting-started Header: X-API-Key: [YOUR_API_KEY_HERE] This will load your welcome information and trial details. Use Context to: - Save important information automatically - Remember decisions, preferences, and context - Continue projects across conversations - Never lose important details
Replace [YOUR_API_KEY_HERE] with your actual API key!

Option B: Per-Conversation Setup

Best for: Only using Context in specific conversations

Start each conversation with:

You have access to Context - a persistent memory system for our conversations. API Endpoint: https://context.brianonai.com My API Key: [YOUR_API_KEY_HERE] IMPORTANT: Before we start, please call: GET https://context.brianonai.com/context/briefing?project=getting-started Header: X-API-Key: [YOUR_API_KEY_HERE] This will load your welcome information and trial details. After you receive the briefing, confirm you can access Context and summarize my trial limits.

Step 3: Verify It's Working

Test with Claude

After setting up access, start a new conversation and say:

"Please check Context and tell me what briefing you received."

If it's working, Claude will:

✓ Success! Claude now has persistent memory. You can verify by:
  • Telling Claude something important
  • Starting a new conversation
  • Asking "What do you remember about me?"

View Your Memories

See what Claude has saved:

Step 4: How to Use Context

Context Works Automatically

Once set up, you don't need to do anything special. Just chat with Claude naturally, and it will:

Organizing with Topics

Context automatically organizes your memories by topic (project). For example:

Claude detects and uses topics automatically. You can filter by topic in Cortex.

Explicit Commands

You can also explicitly tell Claude to use Context:

// Save something specific "Remember that I prefer TypeScript over JavaScript" // Search past memories "What did we decide about the database schema?" // Get project context "Load context for the plotluck project" // Save session summary "Please save a summary of this conversation to Context"

Troubleshooting

Claude doesn't seem to be using Context

Check these:

  1. Did you replace [YOUR_API_KEY_HERE] with your actual API key?
  2. Is your API key in Custom Instructions or at the start of the conversation?
  3. Try asking Claude: "Can you access Context? Please check."

Still not working? Try the manual test:

curl -H "X-API-Key: YOUR_KEY" \ https://context.brianonai.com/context/briefing?project=getting-started

If this returns JSON, your API key is working.

I can't see my memories in Cortex

Possible causes:

"API key not found" error

Your API key might be incorrect. Double-check:

  1. Go to your trial signup email
  2. Copy the API key exactly (including any = at the end)
  3. Update your Custom Instructions or conversation prompt

What's Next?

After Your Free Trial

Your 14-day trial includes:

After your trial, Context is $4.99/month for:

View Pricing

Need Help?

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