Set up Cortex

Cortex connects your organization's AI tools and model requests to one workspace.

Two ways to connect

Connect through Defender, Gateway, or both. Each one is set up separately, and neither requires the other.

	Defender	Gateway
What it is	The endpoint application that connects supported AI tools and syncs approved activity to your organization's Cortex workspace.	Your organization's Gateway URL. Clients send model requests to it with a personal Cortex key, and Gateway calls the enabled provider with your company's key.
What you install	Defender, on each Mac or Windows PC.	Nothing on the device.
What it works with	Supported AI tools in apps, command lines and browsers.	Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, the Anthropic and OpenAI SDKs, and curl.
How you confirm it	Activity captured in Defender, then the matching record in Atlas.	The provider response, then Last used on your key.
Setup guide	Set up Defender	Set up Gateway

Create your organization first. If your company is already on Cortex, go straight to the guide you need.

Before you begin

Required

Approved domain

Ask your Chaos Labs representative to approve your company domain for sign-up. Sign-up refuses a domain that has not been approved, and a subdomain needs its own approval.
Work account

Use Google Workspace or a work email address. Personal email addresses cannot create an organization.
DNS access

You, or a colleague, must be able to add a TXT record at your company's DNS provider.

Create your organization

The person who completes these steps becomes the organization's first admin. To have this done for you, ask Chaos Labs to create the organization and designate your first admin.

Set up with your agent

Copy this page into Claude Code, Codex or another coding agent and it walks you through the steps.

You still: sign in with Google or an emailed code, then publish the DNS TXT record.

Sign in at cortex.chaoslabs.xyz. Use your work account in one of two ways:
- Select Continue with Google and choose your Google Workspace account.
- Enter your work email in Work email or domain and select Continue. Select Email me a code, enter the 6-digit code from the email and select Verify. The code expires in 10 minutes. Select Resend code if it expires, or Use a different email to start again.
Name your organization. If your company is not on Cortex yet, Cortex shows Create your organization. Check that the account shown is yours, or select Not you? to start again. Enter your Company name, review the URL name and select Continue.

Enter the company name, review the URL name and select ContinueOpen in Cortex
Publish the DNS record. Add the TXT record shown at your DNS provider, using the copy buttons for its Name and Value, before the time shown next to Publish before. The name is _cortex-verification. followed by your domain. Some DNS providers add your zone to the name automatically; there, enter the name without your zone, usually _cortex-verification.
Create the organization. Select Check DNS and create organization.

Copy the TXT record name and value, then select Check DNS and create organizationOpen in Cortex

Done when Cortex opens Fleet with a welcome message. Select Start setup for a guided walkthrough, or Skip for now to follow this guide. Fleet shows No endpoints are enrolled until a device signs in. You are now the organization's first admin.

An organization you create yourself includes Atlas and Gateway. People at your company then sign in with their work account: with Google, with your company's single sign-on, or with a code sent to their work email.

If the DNS check does not pass

Message	Action
The TXT record has not appeared yet. Try again after DNS updates.	Wait for your DNS provider to publish the record, then select Check DNS and create organization again.
The TXT value does not match. Check the published record and try again.	Correct the published value so it matches the value shown, then check again.
DNS aliases are unsupported. Publish the TXT record directly at the full name above.	Add the TXT record at the full name shown, not through an alias.
Your company is already on Cortex. Sign in with your work account.	Select Back to sign-in and sign in.

If you stop before the record is published, sign in later with the same account. Cortex restores your company details. If the time shown next to Publish before passes, Cortex shows a new TXT value; replace the earlier value at your DNS provider.

Review your organization

After the organization and its first admin exist, review the organization name/logo, workspace domain and identity settings, and imported people. Then authorize the first workplace app and coordinate the device pilot with IT.

This 3:08 recording follows those steps. Its app count and installer wording are outdated; use the current app guides and Set up Defender instead.

Guided tutorial3:08

Set up Cortex for your teamUse the chapter list to move through the walkthrough.

Next steps

Set up Defender on your computer, then share it with your team.
Set up Gateway, then have each member create a key.
Review access. See roles and visibility.
Optional: set budgets and connect workplace apps.