EmergentFlow How-To Guide

Learn how to build powerful AI workflows with our visual node-based editor. From basic concepts to advanced automations.

🚀 Getting Started

The Canvas

EmergentFlow uses a visual canvas where you build workflows by placing and connecting nodes. Each node performs a specific function - from AI processing to data manipulation to external integrations.

đŸ–ąī¸ Basic Navigation

  • Pan: Click and drag on empty canvas space, or use middle mouse button
  • Zoom: Scroll wheel or pinch gesture on trackpad
  • Select Node: Click on any node
  • Multi-Select: Hold Shift and click nodes, or drag a selection box
  • Delete: Select node(s) and press Delete or Backspace

Interface Overview

📋 Left Sidebar - Node Palette

Contains all available node types organized by category. Drag nodes from here onto the canvas, or double-click to add at center.

⚡ Top Bar - Run Controls

Contains the Run button to execute your flow, status indicators, and access to settings.

âš™ī¸ Settings Panel

Access via the gear icon. Configure API keys, default providers, voice settings, and more.

📊 Console

Toggle with C key. Shows execution logs, errors, and debug information.

Your First Flow

Let's create a simple AI chat flow:

  1. Drag a Text Input node onto the canvas
  2. Drag an LLM node next to it
  3. Drag a Viewer node to see the output
  4. Connect: Text Input → LLM (Prompt) → Viewer
  5. Type a question in the Text Input
  6. Click Run or press Enter
Text Input
→
LLM
→
Viewer

🔲 Working with Nodes

Adding Nodes

Node Anatomy

Every node has these components:

  • Title Bar: Shows node type and name (double-click to rename)
  • Input Ports (left): Receive data from other nodes - shown as colored circles
  • Output Ports (right): Send data to other nodes
  • Body: Contains configuration options, text fields, dropdowns
  • Inspector Button (🔍): Toggle debug panel showing last inputs/outputs

Configuring Nodes

Click on a node to select it and access its settings. Each node type has different options:

Node States

Visual State Meaning
đŸ”ĩ Blue pulse Processing Node is currently executing
đŸŸĸ Green flash Success Node completed successfully
🔴 Red border Error Node encountered an error - check inspector
âšĒ Idle Waiting Node hasn't run yet or is waiting for input
Use the Inspector (🔍 button on each node) to see exactly what data is flowing through. This is invaluable for debugging!

🔗 Connections & Data Flow

Creating Connections

  1. Click on an output port (right side of a node)
  2. Drag to an input port (left side of another node)
  3. Release to create the connection

You can also drag from input to output - it works both ways!

Connection Rules

Deleting Connections

Understanding Data Flow

When you click Run:

  1. Flow starts from nodes with no inputs (Start, Text Input, etc.)
  2. Each node processes its inputs and produces outputs
  3. Connected downstream nodes receive data and execute
  4. This continues until all paths complete

Port Types

Different ports expect different types of data:

Port Name Expected Data
Prompt / Text / In Text string
System System prompt for AI
Image Base64 image or URL
Trigger / Run Any value (acts as signal)
Query Search query text
URL Web URL
Hover over ports to see their names. Color-coded ports help identify compatible connections.

🤖 AI & LLM Nodes

LLM Node

Core AI

The main node for AI text generation. Sends prompts to language models and returns responses.

Inputs

  • Prompt: The user message/question
  • System: System prompt defining AI behavior (optional)
  • Image: Image for vision models (optional)
  • Trigger: Manual trigger signal

Options

  • Provider: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Groq, Ollama, etc.
  • Model: Specific model (GPT-4, Claude, Gemini, etc.)
  • Stream: Show response as it generates
  • Remember History: Maintain conversation context

Chat Node

Interactive

A conversational interface node with built-in chat UI. Great for testing prompts interactively.

Features

  • Built-in chat interface with message history
  • System prompt input for personality/instructions
  • Automatic conversation memory
  • Export chat log functionality

Agent Node

Autonomous

An autonomous AI agent that can use tools to accomplish goals. Uses ReAct-style reasoning.

Inputs

  • Goal: What the agent should accomplish
  • Tools: JSON array of tool definitions
  • Trigger: Start execution

Outputs

  • Result: Final answer/output
  • Trace: Step-by-step reasoning log

Browser Agent

Autonomous

An AI agent that can browse the web, click links, fill forms, and extract information.

Capabilities

  • Navigate to URLs
  • Click buttons and links
  • Fill out forms
  • Extract text and images
  • Take screenshots
  • Answer questions about page content

Report Generator

Documents

Generates formatted PDF reports from data and images using AI.

AI nodes require API keys. Set these in Settings → API Keys. You can use the default server credits or bring your own keys (BYOK).

📊 Data & Input Nodes

Text Input / Prompt

Input

Simple text input field. Type or paste text that flows to connected nodes.

Image

Media

Upload or paste images. Outputs base64 data for AI vision or display nodes.

You can paste images directly from clipboard (Ctrl/Cmd + V) when the node is selected.

File

Media

Upload files of any type. Outputs file content (text, base64, or raw data).

Folder

Batch

Process multiple files in batch. Upload a folder and iterate through files one by one.

Outputs

  • Current File: Content of current file in batch
  • Filename: Name of current file
  • All Files: Array of all filenames
  • Done: Fires when batch completes

List

Batch

Collect items into a list and process them in batch. Useful for iterating over multiple inputs.

Video (Webcam)

Media

Capture frames from your webcam. Use with vision AI models for real-time analysis.

Web Fetch

Web

Fetch content from URLs. Extracts text and images from web pages.

Search

Web

Web search using DuckDuckGo. Returns search results for a query.

Document Loader

Documents

Load and parse documents (PDF, DOCX, TXT). Automatically chunks for RAG pipelines.

Options

  • Chunk Size: Characters per chunk (default 1000)
  • Overlap: Character overlap between chunks

⚡ Logic & Control Nodes

Start / Button

Trigger

Manual trigger button. Click to start a flow branch. Useful for testing or manual activation.

Timer

Automation

Fires at regular intervals. Set interval in seconds for automated recurring tasks.

Scheduler

Automation

Run flows at specific times. Schedule tasks for specific times of day.

Router

Conditional

Conditional routing based on text matching. Directs flow based on content.

Conditions

  • Contains: Text includes value
  • Equals: Exact match
  • Starts with: Text begins with value
  • Ends with: Text ends with value
  • Regex: Regular expression match

Outputs

  • Match: Fires if condition is true
  • No Match: Fires if condition is false

Counter

Utility

Counts triggers. Useful for tracking iterations or limiting loops.

String Operations

Transform

Combine, split, or transform text. Operations include concat, replace, split, uppercase, etc.

Date/Time

Utility

Get current timestamp in various formats.

Python

Code

Run custom Python code. Access inputs via in1, in2 variables.

Example

# Available: in1, in2 (inputs)
# Return value becomes output

result = in1.upper() + " - " + str(len(in1))
return result

Memory

State

Store and retrieve information across flow runs. Maintains context for AI conversations.

đŸŽ™ī¸ Voice & Audio Nodes

Microphone

Input

Speech-to-text input. Converts your voice to text using various STT engines.

STT Engines

  • Fast Local (Moonshine): Local processing, ~40-75MB model, English optimized
  • Web Speech API: Browser-native, instant but sends to Google
  • Whisper: Most accurate, multilingual, slower

Modes

  • Conversation: Listen → Transcribe → Send → Repeat
  • Continuous: Always listening, building transcript
  • Push-to-Talk: Hold button to record
Load the Fast STT model in Settings → Voice before using the Microphone node for best results.

TTS (Text-to-Speech)

Output

Converts text to spoken audio. Multiple engine options.

Engines

  • Native: Browser's built-in TTS (fast, free)
  • Kokoro AI: High-quality neural TTS (requires loading)

Options

  • Voice selection
  • Speed adjustment
  • Pitch control
  • Auto-play toggle

Personality

AI Config

Define AI personality and behavior. Generates system prompts for voice conversations.

Personas

  • Assistant, Friend, Teacher, Expert
  • Coach, Therapist, Comedian, Storyteller
  • Custom character with name and background

Traits

  • Friendly, Professional, Humorous, Empathetic
  • Analytical, Creative, Patient, Enthusiastic
  • And more...

Audio Player

Playback

Play audio files or URLs. Control playback with trigger inputs.

Voice Conversation Setup

Build a complete voice assistant:

Personality
→
LLM (System)
←
Microphone
LLM
→
TTS

🔌 Integrations

Email Nodes

📧 Gmail

Read and send emails via Gmail API. Requires OAuth connection.

  • Fetch inbox messages
  • Send emails
  • Search emails
  • Label management

đŸ“Ŧ IMAP

Read emails from any IMAP server.

  • Works with any email provider
  • Batch processing
  • New email detection

📤 SMTP Email

Send emails via SMTP.

âœ‰ī¸ Email Action

Perform actions on emails (archive, delete, label).

Communication

📱 Twilio Phone

Make and receive phone calls. Voice conversations with AI.

đŸ’Ŧ Discord

Send messages to Discord channels via webhook.

đŸ’ŧ Slack

Send messages to Slack channels.

âœˆī¸ Telegram

Send messages via Telegram bot.

🔔 Ntfy

Push notifications to your devices.

Databases

🐘 PostgreSQL

Query PostgreSQL databases.

đŸŦ MySQL

Query MySQL/MariaDB databases.

đŸ“Ļ SQLite

Local SQLite database operations.

🍃 MongoDB

NoSQL document database.

⚡ Redis

Key-value store operations.

đŸ”Ĩ Supabase

Supabase database queries.

Productivity

📊 Airtable

Read/write Airtable records.

📝 Notion

Create and update Notion pages.

Hardware

🔌 Serial

Communicate with serial devices (Arduino, etc.).

🎮 HID

Communicate with HID USB devices.

🔍 RAG & Embeddings

What is RAG?

Retrieval-Augmented Generation lets you give AI access to your own documents. Instead of relying only on training data, the AI can search your content and use it to answer questions.

RAG Pipeline

Document Loader
→
RAG Node (Ingest)
Query
→
RAG Node (Search)
→
LLM (with context)

RAG Node

Vector Store

Inputs

  • Ingest: Text to add to the knowledge base
  • Query: Search query to find relevant content
  • Trigger: Manually trigger search

Output

Returns relevant text chunks that match the query, ready to be used as context for an LLM.

Embedding Node

Vectors

Convert text to vector embeddings. Useful for custom similarity search or vector database integration.

Vector Databases

🌲 Pinecone

Managed vector database. Store and query embeddings at scale.

🔷 Qdrant

Open-source vector search engine. Self-hostable.

For simple use cases, the RAG node handles everything internally. Use dedicated vector DB nodes for production or large-scale applications.

âš™ī¸ Settings & Configuration

Accessing Settings

Click the gear icon in the top bar or press S to open the Settings panel.

API Keys

Server Credits (Default)

EmergentFlow provides credits for using AI services without your own API keys. Check your balance in Settings.

Bring Your Own Key (BYOK)

For unlimited usage or specific providers, add your own API keys:

  • OpenAI: For GPT-4, GPT-3.5
  • Anthropic: For Claude models
  • Google: For Gemini models
  • Groq: For fast inference
  • xAI: For Grok models
  • DeepSeek: For DeepSeek models

Ollama (Local AI)

Run AI models locally with Ollama:

  1. Install Ollama on your computer
  2. Run ollama serve
  3. Pull models: ollama pull llama2
  4. In Settings → Ollama, click "Fetch Models"
  5. Select provider "Ollama" on LLM nodes

Voice Settings

Fast STT (Speech-to-Text)

  • Load the model before using Microphone nodes
  • Choose tiny (~40MB) or base (~75MB) model
  • Enable "Auto-load on startup" for convenience

Whisper (Alternative STT)

  • Higher accuracy, slower processing
  • Multilingual support

Kokoro TTS

  • High-quality AI voice synthesis
  • Requires loading model first

Account & Billing

  • Daily Credits: Free credits that refresh daily
  • Wallet Credits: Purchased credits that don't expire
  • Upgrade: Get more credits or Pro features

âŒ¨ī¸ Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut Action
Enter or Ctrl+Enter Run flow
S Open Settings
C Toggle Console
/ Quick node search
Delete or Backspace Delete selected node(s)
Ctrl+C Copy selected nodes
Ctrl+V Paste nodes
Ctrl+D Duplicate selected
Ctrl+A Select all nodes
Ctrl+Z Undo
Ctrl+S Save flow
Escape Cancel current action / Close panel
Shift+Click Multi-select nodes
Ctrl+Click Add/remove from selection
Scroll wheel Zoom in/out
Middle mouse drag Pan canvas

📝 Example Workflows

1. Simple Q&A Bot

Basic question-answering flow:

Text Input
→
LLM
→
Viewer

2. Document Q&A (RAG)

Answer questions about your documents:

File
→
Doc Loader
→
RAG (Ingest)
Text Input (Query)
→
RAG (Search)
→
LLM

3. Voice Assistant

Talk to AI with your voice:

Personality
→
LLM (System port)
Microphone
→
LLM
→
TTS

4. Image Analysis

Analyze images with AI:

Image
→
LLM (Image port)
Text: "Describe this image"
→
LLM (Prompt)
→
Viewer

5. Email Summarizer

Automatically summarize incoming emails:

Gmail (Fetch)
→
LLM (Summarize)
→
Ntfy (Notify)

6. Web Research

Research topics from the web:

Text Input (Topic)
→
Search
→
Web Fetch
→
LLM (Analyze)

7. Batch Image Processing

Process multiple images:

Folder (Images)
→
LLM (Vision)
→
List (Collect)

8. Conditional Routing

Route based on content:

LLM Response
→
Router (contains "error")

Match → Handle Error | No Match → Continue

Need more help? Join our Discord community or check the API documentation.

EmergentFlow Š 2024-2025 | Built with â¤ī¸ for AI builders