Installation

Pencel runs as a native desktop application on macOS, Windows, and Linux. Download it, sign in, and either bring an API key or start on a managed plan.

System requirements

Requirement	Minimum
macOS	macOS 12 Monterey or later
Windows	Windows 10 or later
Linux	Any distribution that supports AppImage
RAM	8 GB
Disk space	500 MB

INFO

Pencel stores its database locally on your machine using SQLite. Your data stays on your computer and is never sent to third-party servers. Only LLM calls leave your machine: with your own API key they go directly to the provider you choose; on a managed Auto/Private plan they route through Pencel's proxy (Private mode is zero-retention). Sign-in and account/entitlement checks also require a network connection.

Download

Visit the Pencel download page and download the installer for your platform:

• macOS — Download the .dmg file. Open it and drag Pencel into your Applications folder.
• Windows — Download the .exe installer. Run it and follow the setup wizard.
• Linux — Download the .AppImage file. Make it executable (chmod +x Pencel.AppImage) and run it.

WARNING

On macOS, you may see a security prompt the first time you open Pencel. Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security and click Open Anyway.

First launch

When you open Pencel for the first time, an onboarding flow walks you through setup.

1. Open Pencel.
2. Accept the Terms of Service and sign in with Google or email. Sign-in is required before you can use any model (including your own API key).
3. The onboarding flow then walks you through:
   • Role — Pick the role that fits you (finance, engineering, operations, sales, and more) so Pencel can tailor what it suggests.
   • Goals & priorities — Choose from a gallery of common goals and drag-rank what matters most, or write your own.
   • Connect — Optionally connect a data source (Slack, Google, GitHub, databases) with real one-click OAuth.
   • Review — Pencel researches your context and proposes a starter agent, workflow, and a solution pack to install. Confirm what to create.
4. When you finish, you land on Pulse with a starter job already set up.

Signing in vs. paying for models

Signing in is always required. To actually run models you need either an active subscription (Pencel's managed Auto / Private modes) or your own API key for Anthropic, Google, or OpenAI. Beta testers can redeem an invite code for free credits — see Beta Tester Setup. Keys you bring are stored securely in your operating system's keychain — never in plain text or the database.

Getting an API key

If you want to bring your own key, here is where to get one:

• Anthropic (Claude) — Sign up at console.anthropic.com and create an API key under API Keys. Pencel supports Claude Sonnet 4.6, Opus 4.6, and Haiku 4.5.
• Google (Gemini) — Visit aistudio.google.com and generate an API key. Supports Gemini 2.5 Flash and 2.5 Pro.
• OpenAI (GPT-4o) — Go to platform.openai.com and create an API key under API Keys. Supports GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini.

Add keys any time under Settings → Credentials. See Accounts & sign-in for how sign-in, subscriptions, and BYOK fit together.

Verify your setup

Open the Chat composer and send a short message like "Hello." If you get a response, sign-in and your model access are working.

What's next

• Quickstart — Build and run your first agent in five minutes
• What is Pencel? — Understand the core concepts and architecture