---
title: "Getting started"
description: "Install o8, sign in, bring your keys, and run your first dispatch."
canonical_url: https://o8.run/docs/getting-started
md_url: https://o8.run/docs/getting-started.md
last_updated: 2026-06-25
version: "0.1.431"
stability: stable
---

# Getting started

> Install o8, sign in, bring your keys, and run your first dispatch.

Five minutes from download to your first reviewed change. o8 is macOS 14+; the current build is Intel and runs on Apple Silicon via Rosetta.

## 1. Download

Grab o8 from [o8.run/download](/download). You'll create a free account (GitHub or Google) on the way — that account is what your setup, memory, and any founder perks bind to, so they follow you across machines.

## 2. Install

Open the `.dmg`, drag o8 to Applications, then **right-click → Open** the first time so macOS lets it run. After that it auto-updates.

## 3. Sign in

Launch o8 and sign in with the same account you used to download. That's it — there's no license key to paste; your account carries everything.

## 4. Bring your keys

o8 runs on **your** model access. Add your Claude or Codex credentials in Settings, and the orchestrator and its fleet run on them. (Founding Operators can skip this — the managed layer runs the fast path for you.)

## 5. Run your first dispatch

Point o8 at a repository, describe a task to the orchestrator, and let it work:

1. The orchestrator plans the task and **dispatches** it to a coding agent in an isolated worktree.
2. When the agent finishes, the **governance layer reviews** the diff — and routes risky changes to a second, blind reviewer.
3. The change surfaces for your **approval**. Nothing merges until you say so.

That loop — dispatch → review → approve — is the whole rhythm of o8. Everything else is a richer way to run it.

## Next

- **[What is o8?](/docs/what-is-o8)** — the one-page picture.
- **Agents & Dispatch** — the worktree model, the escalation ladder, and how review actually decides.