Can I connect my own Claude during the trial?
Two ways to ask for changes during your trial, and you can use both.
The prompt
“Explain what you can do on my trial site through this connection: read it, draft changes, and publish when I ask. Then list three small changes worth making first.”
Signed in, Get my prompt fills in your site for you. Otherwise press Copy and fill in the [bracketed] parts. First time? Connect your AI to bernard once: Use your own AI (opens in a new tab).
Bernard’s own AI, paid in shells
The workshop in your account has Bernard built in. Type what you want in plain words and he drafts it; you approve it and it goes live. Each run costs a few shells, and your trial starts with a balance, so your first asks are free. Doing something real with the site, like approving your first change, earns a few more.
Your own Claude, costing nothing extra
If you already use Claude on the web or Claude Desktop, connect it from Account → Your AI. On the web it’s a one-click sign-in; a desktop app takes the pasted setup prompt described in What is the connection key?. Once connected, your Claude can read your trial site, draft changes and, when you ask, make a draft live, the same things Bernard does, without spending any shells.
Which to use
Start with whichever is nearer to hand. Most people try Bernard in the workshop first because it’s already there, then connect their own Claude once they see what asking in plain words gets them. Either way the rule is the same: nothing goes live until you approve it. When the trial ends, see What happens when my 14-day trial ends?.
Questions people ask
- Do I have to use Bernard’s own AI in the trial?
- No. Your trial comes with a starting balance of shells to spend on Bernard’s own AI, so your first asks are free. If you’d rather use your own Claude, connect it from Account → Your AI and it does the same work through the same connection, with no shells spent.
- What can a connected Claude do on a trial site?
- The same as on any bernard site: read your pages, draft changes, and make a draft live when you ask it to. It never publishes on its own initiative, and every publish is recorded and can be put back. You approve what goes live, same as in the workshop.
- What are shells?
- Shells are what Bernard’s own AI runs on. Your trial starts with a balance, and doing something real with the site earns more. If you connect your own Claude, you don’t need them.
- Does the connection stop when the trial ends?
- It stops working if the account is closed. If you keep the site, the connection carries on exactly as it was.