Claude CLI (Required)

AIDEN uses the Claude CLI as its primary AI backend. You must install and authenticate it before using AI features.

Install Claude CLI

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-cli

Authenticate

claude auth

This opens a browser window to authenticate with your Anthropic account. Once authenticated, the CLI stores credentials locally.

Verify

claude --version

API Key Configuration

AIDEN supports configuring AI provider API keys in the app settings:

Anthropic API Key

1. Get your API key from console.anthropic.com 
2. Open AIDEN → Settings → AI Providers
3. Enter your Anthropic API key

OpenAI API Key (Optional)

1. Get your API key from platform.openai.com 
2. Open AIDEN → Settings → AI Providers
3. Enter your OpenAI API key

Model Selection

AIDEN primarily uses Claude models for:

• Project Analysis — Understanding your codebase
• Story Planning — Refining specs in chat
• Agent Mode — Full autonomous coding with tool access
• Orchestrator — Project-wide coordination

Usage & Costs

AI API calls are billed by your provider (Anthropic/OpenAI). AIDEN itself doesn’t charge for AI usage — you pay your provider directly.

AIDEN includes a built-in Token Tracking dashboard that monitors usage across all providers in real time. Navigate to Usage in the sidebar to see:

• Total tokens and costs per provider and model
• Cost trend charts and provider breakdowns
• Budget alerts with configurable spending limits
• CSV/JSON export for detailed analysis

See the Token Tracking feature page for full details.