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This guide takes you from zero to your first governed AI response.

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Prerequisites

1

An Operark account

Sign up at app.operark.com and create an organization.
2

An API key

In the dashboard, go to Settings → API Keys and create a key. Copy it immediately — it is shown only once.
Treat your API key like a password. It carries the full access of your organization. Never commit it to source control or expose it in a browser.

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1. Set your key

export OPERARK_API_KEY="YOUR_API_KEY"
export OPERARK_BASE_URL="https://api.operark.com"

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2. List the available executives

Every organization has the same 15 runtime agents. List them to confirm your key works: 
curl "$OPERARK_BASE_URL/api/v1/executives" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $OPERARK_API_KEY"

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3. Ask an executive a question

Ask the CFO (AI_CFO, “Nova”) a finance question: 
curl -X POST "$OPERARK_BASE_URL/api/v1/executives/AI_CFO/ask" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $OPERARK_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "message": "What should we watch in next quarter cash flow?"
  }'
The response includes the executive’s answer plus governance metadata — the session id, any tools used, and the decision lineage when applicable.

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4. Request a decision

ask is advisory. When you need a recorded, governed decision, use decide: 
curl -X POST "$OPERARK_BASE_URL/api/v1/executives/AI_CRO/decide" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $OPERARK_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "message": "Approve a new vendor with SOC 2 Type II but no ISO 27001?"
  }'
Decisions are written to the audit trail and may route through approval or a Sentinel (CRO) veto depending on your governance configuration.

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Next steps

Authentication

Key types, scopes, and rotation.

The agents

Who the 15 runtime agents are and what they own.

Governance

Approvals, the audit trail, and the veto model.

SDKs

TypeScript, Python, and Go clients.