Installation

There are two ways to get started with Conway:

One-line setup -- creates a wallet, provisions an API key, and auto-configures your AI tools
Manual install -- if you already have an API key from app.conway.tech

One-Line Setup (Recommended)

curl -fsSL https://conway.tech/terminal.sh | sh

This script handles everything:

Installs conway-terminal globally via npm
Creates a wallet -- generates a local private key at ~/.conway/
Provisions an API key -- signs in with your wallet automatically (SIWE)
Configures your AI tools -- detects and sets up Claude Code, Claude Desktop, and OpenClaw if installed

After the script finishes, you'll see your wallet address. Fund it with USDC on Base to start using compute:

Send USDC directly to the wallet address
Or buy credits at app.conway.tech

That's it. Your agent is ready.

What Gets Installed

What	Where	Purpose
`conway-terminal`	Global npm binary	MCP server + CLI tools
Wallet keypair	`~/.conway/`	Agent identity + payment signing
API key	`~/.conway/config.json`	Authentication with Conway API
MCP config	Auto-detected	Claude Code, Claude Desktop, OpenClaw integration

Manual Install

If you already have an API key from the dashboard, you can install manually:

npm install -g conway-terminal

Or use npx without installing:

npx conway-terminal

Then set your API key:

export CONWAY_API_KEY="your-api-key"

Manual Configuration

Variable	Required	Default	Description
`CONWAY_API_KEY`	Yes	-	Your API key (from setup script or dashboard)
`CONWAY_API_URL`	No	`https://api.conway.tech`	API endpoint URL

Linux/macOS:

export CONWAY_API_KEY="cnwy_k_..."

Windows (PowerShell):

$env:CONWAY_API_KEY = "cnwy_k_..."

Running the Terminal

Stdio Mode (Default)

For integration with Claude Desktop, Cursor, and other MCP clients:

conway-terminal

The server communicates via stdin/stdout using the MCP protocol.

HTTP Mode

For web integrations or testing:

conway-terminal --http 3000

Verify Installation

# Check version
conway-terminal --version

# Test with a simple request (HTTP mode)
conway-terminal --http 3000 &
curl http://localhost:3000/mcp/v1/tools

Troubleshooting

"CONWAY_API_KEY not set"

If you used the setup script, the key is stored in ~/.conway/config.json. If it's missing, re-run:

conway-terminal --provision

Or set it manually:

export CONWAY_API_KEY="cnwy_k_..."

"Cannot find module"

Reinstall:

npm uninstall -g conway-terminal
npm install -g conway-terminal

Connection Errors

Check that you can reach the API:

curl https://api.conway.tech/health