Personal subscription or API key: what your company should use

The rule is simple: your subscription works for you. The company key works for the company.

Claude Pro, Claude Max, ChatGPT Plus and Pro are personal plans. The providers' terms say so clearly. If your plan starts answering colleagues' tasks, it is a shared account.

Your subscription works for you. The company key works for the company.

Who uses which account

Situation	Account used
You, on your computer	Your subscription
Your personal agents	Your subscription
A colleague, on their own computer	Their own AI account
A colleague gives the company server a task	The company API key
The company's AI staff	The company API key
One-person company	Your subscription, with a warning

Why an API key for the company

The providers' terms. A personal plan is not shared. An API key is made for products and teams.

Separate from your history. The company server does not see your personal chats and connectors.

Revocable. Someone leaves or something changes? Delete the key and make a new one in two minutes.

Clear cost. You pay Anthropic or OpenAI directly, by usage. Set a monthly cap in their console.

What it looks like in Zen Staff

Colleagues only see the key's label, never the key.

Invite colleagues freely. Each one works on their own computer, with their own Claude or ChatGPT account. You need the company key only when the company server works for colleagues: shared AI staff and tasks for the company's agents.

What about Gemini?

Google only allows Gemini in other apps through an API key. In Zen Staff, Gemini is not yet available as an agent engine. coming soon

What does it cost?

It depends on how many tasks you run per day and which model you pick. Work out the monthly cost before you make the key. Zen Staff adds nothing on top of the provider's price.

We do not sell AI. Zen Staff gives your AI hands.

Questions

Can I use my Claude Pro subscription in Zen Staff?

Yes, for your own work on your computer. The server that works for colleagues needs a company API key.

Who pays for the AI?

The company, directly to Anthropic or OpenAI, by usage. Zen Staff does not resell AI and adds nothing on top.

Do I need the company key to invite colleagues?

No. Colleagues use their own AI accounts, on their own computers. You need a company API key only for the company server, when it works for colleagues.

Personal subscription or API key?

Your computer

The company server