Getting started

Welcome. You're joining a member-governed AI cooperative — not signing up for a service from a vendor. You'll help direct the project while getting private AI chat and API access in return.

This guide covers the three things most new members want: becoming a member, using the chat, and getting involved in governance.

1. Become a member

Membership is a sliding-scale contribution starting at $5/month through Open Collective (the suggested level is $15 — pay what fits your circumstances).

Go to opencollective.com/inference-cooperative.
Choose a contribution amount ($5 minimum) and subscribe.
After you contribute, you'll land on a "check your inbox" page.

Within a few minutes, you'll get a welcome email with a link to set up your account. Click it and create your login.

One thing that matters: the email address you use on Open Collective and the email address you use to set up your account must match. Membership is verified by matching those two emails. If they differ, you won't be recognized as a member. (Contributed without an Open Collective account? You're recognized by the email you entered at checkout.)

Your membership includes

Private AI chat through the co-op's shared gateway.
API access for your own tools and projects (see API access).
A monthly usage allowance of $15 of credit, shared between chat and API.
Credit packs — buy extra non-expiring credits when you need more.
A voice in governance — how the project is run and where it goes next.

2. Use the chat

The chat lives at chat.inference.coop. Log in with the account you created in step 1.

Choose your model. You can pick not just which model but where it runs: private (Tinfoil, runs in encrypted enclaves) or green (GreenPT, 100% renewable energy). See the model list for the full list.
Web search is enabled by default (self-hosted, no external dependency).
File uploads work out of the box — ask the chat about a document you attach.
Your usage draws from your monthly allowance; you can see it on the Member Dashboard.
Bring your own tools (MCP servers). The chat supports MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers — external tool services that let the AI do things like search marketplaces, query other services, or pull in specialized data. Every member can connect their own: go to Settings → Tools and add an MCP server by its URL. (If you don't see the Tools tab, log out and back in — the tab appears once your session picks up the capability.) The server must be reachable over HTTP — ones that run only locally on your own computer, like many Claude Desktop configs, can't attach here; use their hosted versions if offered. In a conversation, pick the tool server from the tools menu near the message box and ask away. Your tool servers belong to you: they run under your account, you choose which conversations they attach to, and other members don't see them. Please review what a third-party tool service does with your data before connecting it — see the privacy policy for how the co-op handles your side.

If the chat ever says your balance is out, that's the allowance, not an error — see "Your allowance" below.

3. Get involved in governance

You don't just use the co-op; you help run it. Decisions about models, pricing, privacy, and direction happen on our Loomio forum:

forum.inference.coop — where members discuss and decide.
matrix.inference.coop — our Matrix chat server. Log in with your co-op account (Cloudron SSO); your Matrix ID is @username:inference.coop. Every member is invited to the Inference Cooperative space automatically — check your invites on first login.

Using it from any Matrix client — the server speaks the standard Matrix protocol, so you can connect from any client:
- Element (web, desktop, iOS, Android): on the sign-in screen, click Edit next to "Homeserver" and enter https://matrix.inference.coop, then sign in with your co-op account. (On app.element.io or the desktop/mobile apps alike.) Note: the new Element X apps (iOS/Android/macOS) are not currently supported — they only work with the newer Matrix Authentication Service, which this server doesn't run yet. Use the classic Element apps (Element Web / Element Desktop / "Element" on the app stores) or another client below.
- FluffyChat, Cinny, SchildiChat or any other client: look for the "custom homeserver" / "other server" option in the client's login screen and enter the same address.
- Your co-op account and your existing Matrix account on another server (e.g. matrix.org or a personal homeserver) are separate identities. If you'd rather use an existing account for co-op rooms, set it on your dashboard under Matrix chat (one extra account) — invitations will go there instead. Both work either way.
Members-only, readable history. The space is invite-only and unencrypted so every member can read the full history (including messages from before they joined). Invites are restricted to admins — so while any member is welcome to bring a collaborator or guest, an admin sends the invite rather than members handing the space to outsiders directly.
#inferencebot-updates — an automated feed inside the space where the co-op's stewarding bot posts daily updates on infrastructure work: model changes, gateway upgrades, maintenance, and outages. Posts are anonymized (never any member-identifying details) and only the bot and admins can write — it's a read-and-follow channel. Questions go to the main space room.
#design — an open member room for co-op design discussions: website, docs, dashboard, branding. All members can post; pull up a chair.
See the Charter for how governance is structured.
See Open questions for the decisions currently on the table.

During the pilot phase, Nathan Schneider serves as General Manager and holds final discretion — but members deliberate now, and full member governance is the goal as the co-op grows.

Help build it

Everything we run is open source, and members are welcome to contribute code, documentation, and design. See Infrastructure for the map and the "Contributing" section for how to propose changes through git.inference.coop.

Your allowance and credits

Membership includes $15 of usage credit each month (same for every member, regardless of what you pay), shared between chat and API. It's a starting value, not a hard rule:

The allowance resets each month on your personal billing date (the day your membership payment recurs) — not on a fixed calendar day.
The allowance can be adjusted per member — contact info@inference.coop.

Need more than the allowance?

Members can buy credit packs — non-expiring credits that kick in automatically when your monthly allowance runs out:

Credits never expire. Unused credits carry over month to month.
They're drawn only after the monthly allowance is exhausted, so your allowance always gets used first.
Buy a credit pack on our Open Collective page (choose the "Credit pack" option). Credits are applied to your account automatically — usually within minutes.
Credit packs are for members. If you buy one before joining, we'll hold it and it will be applied to your account when you join (or refunded if you prefer — just email info@inference.coop).

You can see both buckets — allowance left this cycle and non-expiring credits — on the Member Dashboard.

Need help?

Questions about the service or your account: info@inference.coop
Governance and decisions: the forum
Building on the API: API access
Leaving: cancel your subscription on Open Collective; your account is deactivated and your data preserved for reactivation. You may request full deletion.

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