> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://runcrate.ai/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> Make your first AI model API call in under 5 minutes.

export const RuncrateStyles = () => {
  if (typeof document !== 'undefined' && !document.getElementById('runcrate-overrides')) {
    const s = document.createElement('style');
    s.id = 'runcrate-overrides';
    s.textContent = `
      /* Match Runcrate's rounding scale (--radius: 0.75rem) */
      .rounded-sm { border-radius: 0.5rem !important; }   /* 8px */
      .rounded-md { border-radius: 0.625rem !important; } /* 10px */
      .rounded-lg { border-radius: 0.75rem !important; }  /* 12px */
      .rounded-l-sm { border-top-left-radius: 0.5rem !important; border-bottom-left-radius: 0.5rem !important; }
      .rounded-r-sm { border-top-right-radius: 0.5rem !important; border-bottom-right-radius: 0.5rem !important; }
      .rounded-l-md { border-top-left-radius: 0.625rem !important; border-bottom-left-radius: 0.625rem !important; }
      .rounded-r-md { border-top-right-radius: 0.625rem !important; border-bottom-right-radius: 0.625rem !important; }
      .rounded-l-lg { border-top-left-radius: 0.75rem !important; border-bottom-left-radius: 0.75rem !important; }
      .rounded-r-lg { border-top-right-radius: 0.75rem !important; border-bottom-right-radius: 0.75rem !important; }

      /* Cards: never pure white in light mode */
      .card { background-color: #fcfcfc !important; border-radius: 0.75rem !important; }
      html.dark .card { background-color: #141414 !important; }

      /* Docs hero box */
      .rc-hero { background-color: #fcfcfc; border: 1px solid #e0e0e0; }
      html.dark .rc-hero { background-color: #141414; border-color: #242424; }
      html.dark .rc-hero h1 { color: #f5f5f5; }

      /* Runcrate scrollbar — thin, transparent track, hide-until-hover thumb */
      ::-webkit-scrollbar { width: 6px; height: 6px; background-color: transparent; }
      ::-webkit-scrollbar-track { background-color: transparent; }
      ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb { background-color: rgba(155, 155, 155, 0.5); border-radius: 10px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease; opacity: 0; }
      ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb:hover { background-color: rgba(155, 155, 155, 0.7); }
      *:hover::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb,
      *:focus::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb,
      *:active::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb { opacity: 1; }
      * { scrollbar-width: thin; scrollbar-color: rgba(155, 155, 155, 0.5) transparent; }
    `;
    document.head.appendChild(s);
  }
  return null;
};

<RuncrateStyles />

Get from zero to your first API call in under 5 minutes.

## Step 1: Create Your Account

<Steps>
  <Step title="Sign up">
    Visit [runcrate.ai](https://runcrate.ai) and click **Get Started**. Sign up with email/password, magic link, or OAuth (Google, GitHub, Discord).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Complete onboarding">
    A quick 5-step wizard asks about your use case, experience level, and team size.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add credits">
    Go to **Dashboard → Billing**, add a payment method, and top up credits. Start with as little as \$5.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Step 2: Get Your API Key

Navigate to **Dashboard → Keys → API Keys** tab and click **Create API Key**. Copy the key immediately — it's shown only once.

Your key looks like: `rc_live_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx`

## Step 3: Make Your First Call

The Runcrate Models API is OpenAI-compatible. Base URL: `https://api.runcrate.ai/v1`

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash curl theme={"theme":"github-dark"}
  curl https://api.runcrate.ai/v1/chat/completions \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer rc_live_YOUR_API_KEY" \
    -d '{
      "model": "deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3",
      "messages": [
        {
          "role": "user",
          "content": "Hello!"
        }
      ],
      "max_tokens": 512,
      "temperature": 0.7
    }'
  ```

  ```python Python theme={"theme":"github-dark"}
  from openai import OpenAI

  client = OpenAI(
      base_url="https://api.runcrate.ai/v1",
      api_key="rc_live_YOUR_API_KEY",
  )

  response = client.chat.completions.create(
      model="deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3",
      messages=[
          {"role": "user", "content": "Hello!"}
      ],
      max_tokens=512,
      temperature=0.7,
  )
  print(response.choices[0].message.content)
  ```

  ```javascript JavaScript theme={"theme":"github-dark"}
  import OpenAI from "openai";

  const client = new OpenAI({
    baseURL: "https://api.runcrate.ai/v1",
    apiKey: "rc_live_YOUR_API_KEY",
  });

  const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
    model: "deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3",
    messages: [
      { role: "user", content: "Hello!" }
    ],
    max_tokens: 512,
    temperature: 0.7,
  });
  console.log(response.choices[0].message.content);
  ```
</CodeGroup>

<Tip>
  Install the OpenAI SDK: `pip install openai` (Python) or `npm install openai` (JavaScript).
</Tip>

## Step 4: Try the Playground

Don't want to write code yet? Use the **Model Playground** in the dashboard:

1. Go to **Dashboard → Models**
2. Click any model
3. Start chatting, generating images, or creating videos — right in your browser

The playground shows auto-generated code examples (curl, Python, JavaScript) for every request you make.

## What Else Can You Do?

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Generate Images" icon="photo" href="/models/image-generation">
    Create images with FLUX, Stable Diffusion, and more
  </Card>

  <Card title="Generate Videos" icon="video" href="/models/video-generation">
    Create videos with Sora 2, Veo 3, Kling, and more
  </Card>

  <Card title="Deploy a GPU Instance" icon="server" href="/instances/deploying">
    Launch a full GPU environment with SSH access
  </Card>

  <Card title="Browse All Models" icon="grid-dots" href="/models/model-catalog">
    Explore 140+ open-source models across 8 categories
  </Card>
</CardGroup>