---
title: Build with Basalt
description: Choose the right Basalt integration for handoffs, agents, hosted APIs, automation, independent products, and governed extensions.
slug: index
path: /
section: Overview
availability: supported
nav_order: 1
canonical_url: https://developers.basaltnotes.com/
markdown_url: https://developers.basaltnotes.com/index.md
mirror_url: https://basaltnotes.com/developers
---
# Build with Basalt

Basalt is a user-owned decision-intelligence platform. Developer surfaces let external products, scripts, agents, and approved partner applications continue work in Basalt without turning those integrations into the authority for a user's knowledge, decisions, or actions.

## Choose an integration

| You want to… | Start with | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| Let a user continue external work in Basalt | **Handoff API** | Public integration contract; user can accept into a Free account |
| Let an AI client work with a Basalt Hosted vault | **MCP** | Entitled with plan-specific quotas: Premium, Professional, Developer & Agent, or Team |
| Read or mutate a Basalt Hosted vault from code | **Developer REST API** | Entitled: Developer & Agent or Team |
| Connect Zapier, n8n, webhooks, or event pipelines | **Automation & OpenAPI** | Entitled and workspace-governed |
| Build another application powered by Basalt | **Product Runtime** | First-party / approved partner path |
| Define reusable domain intelligence | **Vertical Intelligence Packs** | First-party / approved partner preview |
| Define a different Basalt product experience | **Product Experience Packs** | First-party / approved partner preview |

## The boundary that matters

Basalt is local-first. A hosted developer surface does not automatically gain access to browser-local knowledge.

```text
Local-only Basalt vault
        ↓
user explicitly connects/maps a logical vault to Basalt Hosted
        ↓
Hosted mapping / explicit product grant
        ↓
REST, MCP, Product Runtime or automation
```

If a logical vault is local-only, hosted APIs report that the capability is unavailable rather than silently uploading the vault to create API symmetry.

## Core governance invariants

Developer integrations do not replace Basalt's internal authority model:

- **Pulse** detects meaningful change.
- **Strata** owns confirmed decisions.
- **Forge** remains the boundary for consequential actions and governed mutations.
- External content is treated as data, not as system instruction.
- Shared agent context is bounded by current Context Scope and audience authority.
- Provenance remains separate from acquisition/marketing attribution.

## Public docs versus paid usage

The Developer Center is public. Some APIs require a paid plan because they operate against authenticated hosted data.

Reading these docs never grants an entitlement. A hostname or Product Experience never grants access to a workspace or vault.

## Start here

- New to the platform: **Getting started**.
- Adding a “Continue in Basalt” button: **Handoff API**.
- Connecting an agent: **MCP**.
- Writing a backend integration: **Developer REST API**.
- Building a separate product: **Product Runtime**.