Install ARIA on Windows
ARIA currently ships for Windows 11. The installer walks you through a standard setup in about two minutes.
1. Download the installer
Grab the latest installer from the ARIA release page. The file name follows the pattern aria-setup-X.Y.Z.exe. Checksum verification steps are listed alongside each release.
2. Run the installer
Double-click the .exe. Windows SmartScreen may flag it the first time — click "More info" → "Run anyway" (ARIA is signed, but new releases take a while to build reputation with SmartScreen). The installer places ARIA in your Start menu and creates a desktop shortcut.
3. First launch — profile setup
On first open you'll walk through a short profile setup:
- Your name and your child's first name — first names only. ARIA is local; nothing leaves your machine.
- Optional Google sign-in — enables Calendar events and Gmail drafts. Skip and connect later if you prefer.
- Optional PIN — required for destructive actions like deleting a device or resetting the ontology cache. Skip and set later if you prefer.
4. Enter your Anthropic API key
ARIA uses your personal Anthropic API key — you pay Anthropic directly at their published rates. There is no ARIA subscription fee. Typical costs: appeal letter ~$0.01–0.03, research session ~$0.15–0.40.
Get a key at console.anthropic.com, then paste it in ARIA under Settings → API Configuration. The key starts with sk-ant-.
5. (Optional) Add an NVIDIA NIM key
For protein-structure tools (AlphaFold overlay, ESMFold prediction), get a free NVIDIA NIM API key from build.nvidia.com and paste it in the NVIDIA card in Settings.
Pro Tip: If you only plan to use family-facing features (Today Board, Meal Planner, Reminders, Phenotype Tracker), the NVIDIA key is not needed.
Next steps
