Quickstart

Slashspace is an AI infinite canvas: a workbench for long, exploratory work like research, learning and writing. Instead of one scrolling chat thread, every conversation, note and source is a node you can place, connect and branch, so you can chase a tangent without losing the main line. Why a canvas makes the full case.

Install

Download Slashspace from slashspace.ai/download:

• macOS: Apple silicon or Intel
• Windows: the .exe installer
• Linux: the .AppImage, or the .deb for Debian and Ubuntu

Run the installer, follow the prompts, and launch Slashspace.

Sign in

1. Click Sign in. Your browser opens the Slashspace sign-in page, where you can sign in or create an account.
2. After you sign in, the browser sends you back to the app, which shows "Waiting for browser sign-in..." until then. If the app doesn't open, click Open Slashspace on the browser page.
3. Still stuck? Click Copy login token on the browser page, then Paste login token in the app. Paste it and click Continue sign-in.

Note: Coming from Rabbitholes? Sign in with the email you bought it with. If Rabbitholes is on this computer, the app first offers to import your canvases. See Moving from Rabbitholes.

Choose a plan

If your account has no plan yet, a plan screen appears. Click Start 3-day free trial (a card is required, and cancelling before the trial ends costs nothing), or subscribe or buy Lifetime straight away. Checkout opens in your browser, and the app continues once you finish. If it doesn't, click Already subscribed? Refresh account. Details are on Plans and billing.

Your first canvas

On first sign-in you see Welcome to Slashspace. Click Continue, and Slashspace creates your first canvas (the sidebar on the left calls canvases spaces).

The canvas holds one chat node, ready for your first message. It starts in Agent mode, where the AI can use tools, on the Auto model, which picks the right Slashspace model for each message. There's nothing to configure first.

Try it: ask, branch, bring in a source

1. Ask a question

Type a question in the chat node's message box and press Enter (Shift+Enter adds a new line). Pick something with room to explore, like "How did the printing press change the way scientists shared ideas?"

Why it matters: the exchange lives in a node you can move and come back to, not in a transcript that scrolls away.

2. Fork a tangent

Something in the answer catches your eye. Type a follow-up, but instead of sending it normally, click the branch icon beside Send (tooltip Submit in new branch) or press ⌘⇧Enter (Ctrl+Shift+Enter on Windows and Linux). A new chat node appears to the right, connected to the first, and answers there. For an empty branch instead, press ⌘B (Ctrl+B on Windows and Linux) while your cursor is in the message box.

Why it matters: the branch builds on the conversation so far, while the original thread stays exactly as it was, so you can explore several directions side by side. See Branching.

3. Bring in a source

1. Copy the address of a web page or a YouTube video.
2. Click an empty spot on the canvas so no message box is active, then paste (⌘V, or Ctrl+V on Windows and Linux).
   • A web page address becomes a Web node with the address filled in. Click Go to capture the page.
   • A YouTube link becomes a Post node, which fetches the video's transcript.
3. Drag from the handle on the new node's right edge to the handle on a chat node's left edge. Or drop it on an empty spot to get a new chat node that's already connected.
4. Ask that chat about the source, for example "What are the main claims here, and how well are they supported?"

You can also type @ in a message box and pick the node: mentioning a node connects it for you.

Why it matters: connections decide what each conversation sees, so the answer rests on the source you chose, and the source sits next to the conversation that uses it. See Connections and context.

Use your own AI (optional)

Auto and the other models in the model picker's Slashspace group are hosted by Slashspace. They, and hosted tools such as image generation, are paid from your hosted wallet, and your plan includes some wallet balance. Your own AI never draws from the wallet:

• A Claude or ChatGPT subscription, through Claude Code or Codex: Subscription providers
• Your own API keys for OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and others: API providers
• Local models on your computer: Ollama

Set them up in Settings (bottom of the sidebar) under AI Settings, then pick them from the model dropdown in any chat node. See Choosing a model.

Where to go next

• Why a canvas: where chat threads break down.
• Core concepts: the mental model in one page.
• Connections and context: control what each chat sees.
• Branching: every way to fork a conversation.
• Chat node: modes, models, tools and message actions.

Get help

Join the Discord community, email support@slashspace.ai, or right-click the canvas and choose Bug / Feedback (also under Settings > Troubleshoot). For common problems, see Troubleshooting and support.