# Start here: connect the AI you already use

> Pick the AI you already use and follow one five-minute page to connect it to The Cloud over MCP. Claude Desktop, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Cursor, Gemini CLI, or a local model on your Mac.

## Pick your client

The Cloud is an MCP server. Point an AI you already use at one address and it reads your Memory and works in your workspace, under the consent rules. Each page below is the whole setup for one client, ending in a check that proves it worked.

```text
https://mcp.thecloud.so/mcp
```

- [Claude Desktop](/docs/start/claude-desktop). Add a custom connector and sign in once.
- [Claude Code](/docs/start/claude-code). One terminal command, plus the permissions map so deletes still ask.
- [ChatGPT](/docs/start/chatgpt). Developer Mode and a custom connector. Needs a paid plan.
- [Cursor](/docs/start/cursor). One click, or four lines in mcp.json.
- [Gemini CLI](/docs/start/gemini). One terminal command, no JSON file.
- [Local models](/docs/start/local-models). Pair a Mac with MachineSync and run an open model through Ollama.

Using something else? Any client that speaks HTTP MCP can add the same address. [Connect into The Cloud](/docs/connect-into-the-cloud) covers authentication, the Windsurf and CI shapes, and the whole tool surface.

> **One thing to type first** — Whichever client you pick, send `sync` as your first message. It loads your memory and confirms the connection in one step. If **sync** answers, you are connected.