AI features and your own API keys
Arino One includes optional AI features that help agents work faster: suggested replies, automatic conversation summaries, inbound translation, and synthetic voice for greetings and voicemail. You can bring your own API keys for OpenAI, Anthropic or ElevenLabs; Arino One stores the keys server-side and calls the provider on your behalf, so you are billed by the provider directly.
AI features are optional. No AI provider account is required to use Arino One. If you do not add a key, the AI surfaces simply do not appear or return no suggestions, and the rest of the platform continues to work normally.
What AI features are available
AI-assisted replies suggest a next response while an agent is reading a conversation. The agent sees a draft, can edit it, and sends it as a normal message. It is a drafting aid, not an auto-send: the agent remains in control of every outbound message.
Conversation summarisation generates a short recap of a long conversation on demand. This is useful when an agent takes over a ticket, when a manager reviews escalated threads, or when you need a handover note for a channel that has been running for hours.
Translation translates inbound messages into the agent's language, and can translate outbound replies back into the contact's language. It is used on channels where contacts write in languages your team does not cover, and it is enabled per channel rather than globally.
ElevenLabs voice turns written greetings, hold messages and voicemail prompts into spoken audio. It is used by the voice routing system, so callers hear a natural voice rather than a recorded clip or system beep. See voice and WebRTC calling for how voice routing, recording and voicemail work.
Bring your own AI API keys
Arino One does not ship with shared AI keys. Instead, you add your own provider keys in Settings → Secrets on your instance. Supported providers are:
| Provider | Key type | What it enables |
|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | ChatGPT / GPT API key | AI-assisted replies, summarisation, translation |
| Anthropic | Claude API key | AI-assisted replies, summarisation, translation |
| ElevenLabs | ElevenLabs API key | Synthetic voice greetings and voicemail prompts |
You only need one text provider to enable the text AI features. OpenAI and Anthropic are alternatives; if you add both, you can choose which model is used for each feature in Settings → AI. ElevenLabs is separate and is only needed for voice synthesis.
How to add a key
- Open your instance console and go to Settings → Secrets.
- Click Add secret.
- Choose the provider: OpenAI, Anthropic or ElevenLabs.
- Paste the API key from the provider's dashboard. For OpenAI, this is a project or user API key from platform.openai.com. For Anthropic, it is a key from console.anthropic.com. For ElevenLabs, it is from the API keys section of your ElevenLabs account.
- Save. The key is encrypted at rest and is only readable by the server-side functions that call the provider.
If you do not have a key, create one in the provider's dashboard first. Arino One does not generate or sell API keys on your behalf.
Security and privacy
API keys are stored in your instance's server-side secrets store and are never exposed to the browser or the mobile app. Agents see the output of AI features — a suggested reply, a summary, a translation — but they never see the key itself. Arino One does not train models on your data or share conversation content with any provider other than the one you explicitly configured.
Because the key is yours, usage is billed to your own provider account. Arino One does not add a markup on AI tokens or voice minutes. If you remove a key, AI features stop immediately and no further provider calls are made.
Where AI features appear
- Inbox: suggested replies appear below the composer when a text AI key is configured.
- Conversation panel: a summary button appears on long threads when summarisation is enabled.
- Channel settings: translation can be toggled per channel for inbound, outbound or both directions.
- Voice routing: ElevenLabs voice is selected as a voice prompt source in Settings → Voice once an ElevenLabs key is added.
If a key is missing, the corresponding control is hidden or disabled. This keeps the UI clean for teams that do not want AI features.
Costs and billing
AI costs are metered by the provider, not by Arino. Text AI usage is billed per token; ElevenLabs is billed per character of generated audio. These charges appear on your provider invoice, not on your Arino invoice. Arino's $50/month connection fee covers instance management, seats and messaging connection, not AI usage.
To control spend, you can set model limits and feature toggles in Settings → AI, or remove a key entirely to disable a provider. See billing and plans for what is included in the Arino connection fee.
Troubleshooting
If AI features stop returning suggestions, check Settings → Secrets first. A key may have been revoked in the provider dashboard, hit a billing limit, or been removed from the instance. Re-adding or regenerating the key fixes most cases. If the key is valid but a feature still fails, the provider may be returning an error; the server logs surface the provider status without exposing the key.
Frequently asked
Do I have to use AI features?
No. AI features are entirely optional. Every Arino One instance works without any AI keys, and you can enable only the features you want. If you later decide to add AI, you can add keys at any time.
Which AI providers can I use?
Arino One supports OpenAI (ChatGPT), Anthropic (Claude) and ElevenLabs. These cover the text features — assisted replies, summarisation and translation — and voice synthesis for greetings and voicemail.
Where are my API keys stored?
In your instance's server-side secrets store. Keys are never sent to the browser, never exposed in the UI, and never logged. Arino One reads them only when making provider calls on the server.
Who pays for AI usage?
You pay the provider directly. Arino One passes your key to OpenAI, Anthropic or ElevenLabs on your behalf, so usage is charged to your own account with that provider. Arino does not add a markup on AI usage.
Can I use the same AI key across multiple instances?
Yes, but you manage it per instance. Each instance has its own Settings → Secrets page, so you add the key where you want it used. This keeps billing and data separation clean between instances.
Apply this to your own deployment
This guide describes decisions we make on live instances. Tell us your channels, systems and region and we will map it to an architecture outline, a provisioning plan and an indicative commercial model — usually within one business day.