Set Up AI · Watchflows Docs

The Flow Builder turns a sentence into a working flow. To do that it needs an AI model, and you bring your own. The same model also runs AI nodes such as AI Prompt and Agent.

A new copy of Watchflows may already have one model: Apple Intelligence (on-device). It is free and runs AI nodes. It is too small to build flows, though, so the Flow Builder stays hidden until you add a bigger one. This page walks you from there to your first built flow.

1. Pick how you get AI

You need only one. Pick the row that fits you.

Way	Cost	Setup	Where your prompts go
Watchflows AI	2,000 free Sparks, then packs or $12/month	An email and a sign-in link	OpenRouter, with a key made for your Mac
Your Claude plan	The plan you already pay for	Install an app, sign in	Anthropic, under your account
Your ChatGPT plan	The plan you already pay for	Install an app, sign in	OpenAI, under your account
An API key	Pay per use	Paste a key	The company that gave you the key
Ollama, a local model	Free	Install an app, download a model	Nowhere. It stays on your Mac
LM Studio, a local model	Free	Install an app, download a model	Nowhere. It stays on your Mac
Apple Intelligence	Free	None	Nowhere. It stays on your Mac

Already pay for Claude or ChatGPT? Start there. It adds no bill. Want nothing to leave your Mac? Use a local model.

2. Set it up

Every way ends in the same place. Open Settings (⌘,) and click AI Providers. The box at the top names your Default Provider. Each card below it is one provider. Add Provider opens the editor.

Settings ▸ AI Providers. The top box names the Default Provider. Each card is one provider. The dashed tile at the end is Add Provider.

In the editor, pick a Type. The fields change to fit it. Click Add Provider at the bottom to save it.

Adding an OpenAI provider. Type decides which fields you see. The link under API Key opens OpenAI's key page.

Watchflows AI

The fastest way to AI in Watchflows: no key to find, no model to download, nothing to install.

Try it free. Give your email and click the sign-in link we send. You get 2,000 free Sparks, good for 30 days — about 8 flows built by AI, or about 2,000 AI steps. No password, no card.
Private by design. Your Mac calls the model directly. Your prompts never pass through our servers.
Then, if you like it. Spark packs from $5 that never expire, or Watchflows Cloud at $12 a month with 6,000 Sparks every month. Sparks you buy also unlock the premium models, such as Claude Opus and GPT-5.5; free Sparks run the good-value ones.

Sign in during first run, or later under Settings ▸ Cloud. Once you have Sparks, Watchflows AI appears in AI Providers, ready to use. Watchflows AI and Sparks covers the account, Sparks, and what happens when they run out. Don't want an account? Pick any other tab.

Claude

Install Claude Code from claude.com/claude-code.
Open Terminal, run claude, and log in with your Claude account.
In Watchflows, click Add Provider and set Type to Claude (Subscription).

There is no key to paste. The editor shows three checks instead: Claude Code installed, Signed in, and Ready. When all three are green, save it. More in Claude (Subscription).

ChatGPT

Install the Codex app: run npm install -g @openai/codex in Terminal. This needs Node.js. The source is on GitHub.
Run codex login and sign in with your ChatGPT account.
In Watchflows, click Add Provider and set Type to ChatGPT (Subscription).

The editor shows three checks: Codex CLI installed, Signed in, and Ready. More in ChatGPT (Subscription).

API key

First get a key from the company you want to use:

Company	Get a key
OpenAI	platform.openai.com/api-keys
Anthropic	console.anthropic.com/settings/keys
Google	aistudio.google.com/apikey
OpenRouter, many models behind one key	openrouter.ai/keys

In Watchflows, click Add Provider and pick the matching Type.
Paste the key into API Key. The model list loads.
Pick a Default Model.

The editor links to the key page too, under Don't have a key? Your key is kept in your Mac's keychain. It is never saved into a flow or an export. Another service that speaks OpenAI's format uses the OpenAI Compatible type, with its address in Base URL. See AI Providers for every type.

Ollama

Download it from ollama.com/download and open it.
Pick a model from the Ollama library and run ollama pull <name> in Terminal.
In Watchflows, click Add Provider, set Type to Ollama, and pick your model.

The address is filled in for you. Keep the app running while you use Watchflows. Small models work, but bigger ones build flows more reliably.

LM Studio

Download it from lmstudio.ai/download.
Download a model inside LM Studio and start its local server.
In Watchflows, click Add Provider, set Type to LM Studio, and pick your model.

The address is filled in for you. Keep the app running while you use Watchflows. Small models work, but bigger ones build flows more reliably.

Apple

Nothing to install. It needs macOS 26 or later on an Apple-silicon Mac, with Apple Intelligence turned on in System Settings. Apple's guide: How to get Apple Intelligence.

Use it for AI nodes. The Flow Builder skips it unless you pick it yourself in step 3, because a small model builds flows poorly.

3. Make it the Flow Builder's model

The Flow Builder uses your Default Provider. A new provider does not take over by itself if you already have one. On a new Mac, Apple Intelligence may already be the default.

So, on your new card, click ••• ▸ Set as Default. The box at the top now shows its name.

Want the Flow Builder on a different model than your AI nodes? Open Settings ▸ AI Defaults. Under Flow Builder, pick a Provider and a Model. Use default provider follows the box at the top.

Settings ▸ AI Defaults. Here the Flow Builder uses Claude (Subscription), while Explain this code follows the default.

You can also change it later from the model pill in the Flow Builder itself. It changes the same setting.

4. Build your first flow

Click New Flow. With AI set up, it opens on What should Watchflows watch for?
Type what you want, or click one of the examples.
Press Return.

The pill inside the box shows which model will build it.

A new flow with AI set up. Describe it, pick an example, or click Start from scratch to build by hand. The pill shows the model.

Try this one:

When a PDF lands in my Downloads folder, move it to Documents/Invoices and send me a notification.

The conversation opens on the left, and nodes appear on the canvas as it works. The new flow arrives turned off, with a list of anything it still needs from you. Look it over, press Run to try it, then turn on Enabled.

The Flow Builder. The conversation is on the left with the model pill at its top. The flow is on the canvas.

Keep chatting to change it: "only move PDFs with invoice in the name". The Flow Builder page covers the rest. To build by hand instead, follow Getting Started.

If something is wrong

No Flow Builder anywhere. Your default is Apple Intelligence, or nothing is set up yet. Do step 3.
Ollama or LM Studio: connection error. The app is not running, or the model is not downloaded. Open it and try again.
The model list is empty. Check the API key, then click the refresh button next to Default Model.
A subscription check is red. It says what is missing: install the app or sign in. Then click Recheck.
A build fails. Click Try again. If it keeps failing, pick a bigger model from the pill.
What did that cost? See AI Cost Tracking.

Your keys stay on this Mac. Watchflows keeps them in your keychain and sends each one only to the company it belongs to.