01 Getting Started getting started

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• .NET 10 SDK
• An LLM provider key or a local OpenAI-compatible endpoint (Ollama, etc.)

Install the CLI

dotnet tool install -g KrnlAI.Cli

To verify the installation:

krnlai --version

Configure a Provider

OpenAI

krnlai config set provider openai
krnlai config set api_key sk-...

Ollama (Local)

krnlai config set provider ollama
krnlai config set endpoint http://localhost:11434/v1
krnlai config set model llama3.1

Anthropic

krnlai config set provider anthropic
krnlai config set api_key sk-ant-...

OpenRouter

krnlai config set provider openrouter
krnlai config set api_key sk-or-...

Start a Local Session

krnlai chat --local

The --local flag uses the embedded kernel with SQLite storage. No external services needed.

Initialize a Project

krnlai init my-agent
cd my-agent
krnlai run --interactive

This creates a project scaffold with a CognitiveAgent template, a policy file, and default configuration.

Next Steps

• Explore the CLI Reference
• Understand the Cognitive Cycle
• Learn about the Safety System
• Build with the SDK