Sign in to SynapseX Desktop

This page connects the installed SynapseX Desktop app to your SynapseX account. At the end the SynapseX models will be selectable in the app and you can start an agent session. You never type your password into the desktop app and you do not have to create or paste an API key.

Where is the sign-in button?

Settings (macOS: Cmd+,) → section SynapseX AI → tab Account → button Sign in with SynapseX.

What happens when I click it?

1. The app asks for your SynapseX account email.
2. It opens https://chat.synapsex.ai/activate?code=XXXX-XXXX in your default browser, where XXXX-XXXX is a short code the app also displays.
3. You confirm that code in the browser and approve the sign-in.
4. The app, which has been polling in the background, receives its credentials and the dialog closes.

Two numbers are worth knowing while you wait: the code is valid for 900 seconds (15 minutes), and the app checks for your approval every 5 seconds. So there is a short pause between approving in the browser and the app reacting — that is normal.

You only do this once. A single approval provisions two credentials for the app: model access, and compute access. There is no second sign-in step for the compute side.

For the mental model behind this browser-approval flow, see Device login.

Is there an alternative to browser approval?

The same dialog offers a second method, Manually enter API Key, which stores a key you paste instead of running the browser flow.

Browser approval is the supported path and the one these docs describe, because it is the only one whose end-to-end behaviour is documented here. If you want to sign in without a browser, use Sign in with SynapseX on a machine that has one, or use the SynapseX CLI instead.

How do I verify I am signed in?

Two checks, both inside the app:

1. Open the model picker — it lists the SynapseX models.
2. Start a new session (Shift+Cmd+S on macOS) and send a message. If the agent responds, the model credential is working.

Troubleshooting

The code expired. If you leave the browser tab sitting for more than 15 minutes the code stops working. Close the dialog and click Sign in with SynapseX again to start a fresh code.

You approved in the wrong browser. The approval page requires you to be signed in to chat.synapsex.ai in that browser. If the page asks you to log in rather than showing an approval prompt, sign in at https://chat.synapsex.ai  first, then restart the sign-in from the app so you get a fresh code.

Nothing happened after you approved. Wait at least 5 seconds — the app polls on that interval rather than reacting instantly.

Next step

Before you point the agent at a repository you care about, decide what it is allowed to do: Control what the desktop agent can do. Then open a project in Work on a project with the desktop agent.