# Self-serve signup

Most agents run against an account you already own: you [set up your agent](/docs/ai/set-up-your-agent) and it signs in through the browser. This guide is the other path, where an agent that has no account creates one itself, entirely from the terminal. Three commands take it from nothing to a stored, ready-to-use credential, without a browser or the dashboard. It is the same flow the [MCP server](/docs/ai/mcp-server) exposes as the `auth_signup`, `auth_verify_email`, and `auth_create_org` tools.

You need the [`bird` CLI](/docs/ai/cli-for-agents) installed. Signup and verification are region-agnostic and require no initial configuration. At the last step, pass `--region` (`us1` or `eu1`) to `create-org` to choose where the account and its data live. No hostnames or environment variables are required.

## 1. Create the account

`bird auth signup` creates the account and emails a six-digit sign-in code. It uses the same passwordless magic-link path as the dashboard, so the emailed code is all you need. Keep the email address for the next step.

```bash
bird auth signup you@example.com
# { "email": "you@example.com", "status": "code_sent" }
```

## 2. Verify the email

The six-digit code arrives by email, so it comes from outside the CLI: read it from the inbox. Pass it with the same email to `bird auth verify-email`, which signs you in and, for a brand-new account, returns a single-use `onboarding_ticket`.

```bash
bird auth verify-email you@example.com --code 123456
# { "onboarding_ticket": "...", "user_id": "usr_..." }
```

## 3. Create the organization

`bird auth create-org` consumes the ticket to create your organization and workspace, then stores the minted credential so the CLI and the MCP server authenticate as the new account from here on. It is one-time: a second call returns `409`. `--region` chooses where the account and its data live (`us1` or `eu1`) and routes the call to that region; the CLI derives the host from it, so you do not set a URL.

```bash
bird auth create-org "Acme" --workspace-name "Production" --region us1 --onboarding-ticket <onboarding_ticket>
```

Confirm the credential works:

```bash
bird auth status   # authenticated: true, valid: true
```

The account is live and authenticated. The agent can now send email, manage domains, and everything else the [CLI](/docs/ai/cli-for-agents) exposes, with no further setup.

## Inspect before you run

Every step is self-describing and needs no credential, so an agent can plan the whole chain before sending anything. `bird auth --help` prints the ordered flow, `--example` prints a ready-to-edit request body, and `--response-schema` prints the fields each command returns.

## Next steps

- [CLI for agents](/docs/ai/cli-for-agents) is the command contract the minted credential now unlocks.
- [MCP server](/docs/ai/mcp-server) exposes the same signup flow as tools, plus the hosted tier for already-authenticated clients.
- [Send your first email](/docs/get-started/send-your-first-email) is the happy path once the account exists.