# Welcome to LOFTai

_LOFTai › Getting Started_

## What is LOFTai?

LOFTai is an integrated production environment for teams making AI-generated content. It brings project and task management, a file-and-asset system, a conversational production Assistant, image/video/audio/3D generation, an editorial timeline, dailies review, and team collaboration into one workspace.

## Two ways to work — Virtual and Local

Every project runs in one of two modes. This choice shapes where files live and what you need installed:

-   Virtual (cloud) — files live on the server. Works in any browser, nothing to install. Loft generates content on its own model keys.
-   Local — files live in a folder on your machine or a shared drive. Requires the LoftDesktop app to browse and edit, and can run generation on your own provider keys (BYOK).

See the **Modes** topic for the full picture.

## Key Features

-   Projects & Tasks — Organize work into projects with tasks, schedules, and team assignments
-   Files & Assets — Browse, search, and organize files across libraries, in the browser or on a local drive
-   Assistant — A conversational production agent that finds content, runs queries, builds dashboards, and takes action
-   Generation — Image, video, audio, and 3D generation through the Assistant, the Image Builder, or the Flows canvas
-   Composer — Conversation-built dashboards and views
-   Editorial — Assemble cuts from shots on a sequence timeline and render to video/EDL
-   Review & Dailies — Frame-pinned annotations, status triage, and team review submissions
-   Playbooks — Standing guidance the Assistant reads every turn (project, asset, and per-model)
-   Queue — My Queue (Overview) tracks your own generation jobs across all projects in real time; the project-wide Queue (Manage) shows everyone's for managers
-   Models & Services — Admin-managed model catalog plus registration of external services and local tools
-   Credits & Costing — Track spend by service, asset, model, and month
-   Version Control — Commit and push asset files with full history (desktop)

## Getting Started

When you first sign in you land on the **Projects** page. If you don't have a project yet, you'll be asked how you want to start — point Loft at a folder on your computer (Local, needs LoftDesktop) or create a cloud project you work in from the browser (Virtual). Once a project exists, the sidebar expands with project-specific navigation.

Tip: New to Loft? Do **Your First Hour in Loft** — a guided, hands-on series that takes you from an empty account to a published take in six short lessons. After that, **Core Concepts** fills in the mental model and the **Workflows** section covers specific jobs end to end.

## Navigation

Use the **sidebar** on the left to move between sections. It is organized into groups:

-   OVERVIEW — Projects, My Tasks, My Queue, Search, Explore, Composer, and Flows
-   LIBRARIES — Your project's asset libraries; in Local mode a "Files" entry browses the folder directly
-   MANAGE — Tasks, Types, Libraries, Primers, Queue, and Costing
-   ADMIN — Models, Users, Groups, and Settings

The **top header** carries the app switcher, back/forward, a Quick Search jump palette (`Cmd` + `K` / `Ctrl` + `K`), the **Assistant** button, the notification bell, your credit balance, and the user menu.

The **bell** doubles as a live queue readout. While your own generations are in flight the badge counts them (amber) rather than counting unread history, and the panel lists each one — asset, model, prompt — above your recent notifications. Clicking a running job goes to the folder its output will land in, which is the same place its completion notification takes you, so the bell works as a way back to whatever you were doing.

Tip: Switch between dark and light mode from the user menu (click your name / the person icon in the top-right). Your preference is saved.