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API keys

An API key is a secret code that lets one app use Kortex for you, like a spare house key for a helper. You can take it back any time. Most apps sign in with a browser and need no key. MCP is a standard way to let AI apps like Claude or ChatGPT use Kortex's tools.

This needs Kortex Pro. See pricing.

The MCP Connection window, where you name a key, choose what it may do, and press Generate key

Do I need an API key?​

Often you do not. Most apps let you sign in with a browser, which needs no key. See the Quickstart. A key is for apps that cannot open a browser, such as scripts and servers. It is also how you give one app a smaller set of powers.

How to make a key​

  1. Click the three dots (⋯) at the top right of the Kortex side panel.
  2. Choose MCP Connection.
  3. Under New key label, type a name you will recognise later, such as Claude Desktop, laptop.
  4. Under Tool profile, choose how much the key may do. New keys start on Read-only. That is the right choice unless you know the app needs to change things.
  5. Under Tools it lists, choose what the app can see. The next section explains this.
  6. If you like, type tool names under Disabled tools to switch them off for this key. Separate them with commas.
  7. Press Generate key and copy the key. It starts with kx_mcp_.
The three-dots menu in the side panel, with MCP Connection in the General section

You can also do this in the dashboard. Open Agents in the left sidebar, name the key, choose what it may do and press Create key. Then press Copy config to copy a ready-made block, or Copy key only.

The Agents page lists your keys, what each may do and when it was last used
warning

The key is shown once. Kortex keeps only a scrambled copy, so it can never show it again. If you lose it, revoke it and make a new one.

What does a profile mean?​

The profile decides which tools the key can use at all. Pick the narrowest one that does the job.

  • Read-only (the default): can only look. Nothing is added, changed or deleted.
  • Minimal: can look, and can add things. For example, it can add sources and make notebooks and notes.
  • Standard: adds renaming and moving. It still never deletes.
  • Full: can do everything, including deleting.
What a read-only key lets through

A profile belongs to one key, not to your whole account. You can give a read-only key to an app you trust less and keep a fuller key for yourself.

What is a Just my chats key?​

If the assistant only needs your saved AI chats, choose Just my chats (recommended for chat Library use) under Tools it lists. Then the assistant sees your chat library and nothing else.

Choosing Just my chats, with two extras you can tick and what each costs your assistant
  • It lists only 5 tools. That costs about 3,000 tokens. A token is a small piece of text an assistant must carry in its head. The whole catalogue can cost about 64,000. A smaller list leaves more room for your conversation.
  • Folders, videos and context packs is an extra you can tick. It also lets the assistant read your Library folders, saved YouTube videos, handoff packs, and your about-me and project packs. It is not available with the Minimal profile.
  • Filing, notes, memory cards and saving sessions is another extra. It lets the assistant file chats into folders, add notes, pin messages, save memory cards, and save its own session to your Library. It needs the Standard or Full profile.
  • Everything is the default. Keys you made before keep what they already list.

How to use a key​

It is the same address as signing in. Kortex takes either one. Sending the key in a header is what tells Kortex to use it:

claude mcp add --transport http kortex \
  https://mcp.kortex-notebooklm.com/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer kx_mcp_your_key_here"

Leave the header out and the same address starts the sign-in instead. The MCP Connection window can show a ready-made block for your app. Pick your app in Set up your client and open the API key tab. For every app's format, see Connect your assistant.

Set up your client, with a Sign in tab and an API key tab, and your active keys below

How to check a key works​

This asks Kortex for its list of tools. You can run it in a terminal:

curl -X POST https://mcp.kortex-notebooklm.com/mcp \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer kx_mcp_your_key_here" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/list"}'

A list of tools means the key works and Kortex can be reached. An error tells you which of the two is wrong.

How to keep a key safe​

  • Treat it like a password. Anyone who holds it can act on your notebooks, up to its profile.
  • Never put it in a shared document, a chat, or a code project you share.
  • Make one key per app. Then you can take one back without breaking the others.
  • Start with Read-only. Move up only when the app needs more.
  • Where your app has a hidden-input option (VS Code does), use it.

How to revoke a key​

To revoke a key is to take it back. It stops working on the very next request.

  1. Open MCP Connection in the side panel, or Agents in the dashboard.
  2. Find the key under Active keys. Each shows its name, profile and the date it was last used.
  3. Press Revoke.

If a key may have leaked, revoke it right away, then make a new one.

Related: Security and Limits, Your chats over MCP.