Getting Started with Yanai

This guide walks you through creating your account, building your personal context, and connecting your first AI tool — so your memory belongs to you, not the platforms you use.

Step 1: Create Your Account

  1. Go to yanai.ai and click Sign Up.
  2. Enter your email and create a password.
  3. You'll be taken to the onboarding experience.

Step 2: Set Up Your Aspects

Aspects are categories that organize your context. Think of them as labeled containers for different parts of your life and work. During onboarding, Yanai will help you create your first aspects through a guided chat.

Common aspects people start with:

AspectWhat goes in it
Work — [Your Name]Projects, tech stacks, architecture decisions, workflows
FamilyFamily members, schedules, important dates
HealthFitness goals, dietary preferences, medical context
HobbiesInterests, activities, gear, goals
EducationWhat you're learning, courses, certifications

You can always add, rename, or reorganize aspects later. See Understanding Aspects for tips on organizing effectively.

Step 3: Add Initial Context

Once your aspects are set up, seed them with context. The more context you add, the more useful your AI tools become from day one. You can add context through:

The onboarding chat

The onboarding chat will ask you about your work, interests, and preferences. Just talk naturally — it automatically stores what you share into the right aspects.

Manual context entries

From any aspect's page, you can add context entries directly. This is useful for adding structured information like:

  • Your tech stack (languages, frameworks, databases)
  • Team structure and roles
  • Project details and timelines
  • Coding conventions and preferences

AI tool conversations (after connecting)

Once you connect an AI tool (Step 4), every conversation contributes back to your memory automatically. Your AI tools learn as you work — and everything they learn belongs to you.

Step 4: Connect Your First AI Tool

Yanai works through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Connection takes under a minute for any supported tool.

Choose your tool and follow the setup guide:

  • Cursor — Best for software engineers. Full IDE integration with automatic learning.
  • Claude Desktop — Best for general use. Conversations across all aspects of your life.
  • Claude Code — Best for terminal-based AI coding workflows.
  • ChatGPT — Best for existing ChatGPT users. OAuth-based connection.

All connections use OAuth — you add the server URL, authorize with your Yanai account, and you're connected. No API keys or tokens to manage.

Step 5: Have Your First Contextual Conversation

With your AI tool connected, start a conversation. You'll notice the difference immediately:

Without Yanai:

You: "Help me set up a new API endpoint." AI: "Sure! What language and framework are you using? What's the endpoint for? Do you have any existing patterns?"

With Yanai:

You: "Help me set up a new API endpoint." AI: "Based on your Go + Gin setup with gqlgen, I'll add a new query to your GraphQL schema in schema/schema.graphql, generate the resolver, and implement it following your existing patterns in internal/graph/. Should I also add the corresponding frontend query to your Next.js BFF layer?"

The AI already knows your stack, your patterns, and your architecture — because your context traveled with you.

What Happens Behind the Scenes

When you talk to any connected AI tool:

  1. Your context is retrieved — The AI searches your memories, aspect summaries, and facts to understand who you are and what you're working on.
  2. Relevant memories are reinforced — When retrieved context is useful, its salience is automatically boosted so it stays available longer.
  3. New knowledge is captured — The AI identifies new information worth remembering and stores it to the appropriate aspect.
  4. Nothing is lost — Even if you switch between Cursor, Claude, and ChatGPT throughout the day, they all share the same context — your context.

Over time, your Yanai profile becomes a powerful representation of your knowledge, preferences, and expertise. The more you use it, the better every AI interaction becomes — across every tool.

Next Steps