Install ShotAI and prepare your workspace

Get ShotAI from the official website and use the download currently offered for your computer. The workflows in these guides were checked against the Mac application, version 1.2.0. Available installers and system requirements can change; use the current download information for other platforms rather than assuming identical support from a Mac walkthrough.

Download and open the application

1. Open the official website and choose its download action.
2. Select the installer appropriate for your computer, following the requirements shown there.
3. Complete the installation instructions supplied with that download.
4. Open ShotAI and sign in to your account, or register if you are using it for the first time.

Use the official download source when updating as well. If the available installer does not match your system, check with support before trying an unsupported build. These guides do not establish a minimum memory size, operating system version, or compatibility with every processor.

Prepare source media

Choose a few videos that you can recognize and play on this computer. Leave them in the location you intend to keep using. ShotAI needs access to the source when it plays or exports the material; adding an item to a collection is not a replacement for backing up the video.

For external storage, connect the drive before importing and keep the source path available while working. A saved search result may still exist when the original is unavailable. That does not mean the original can be exported from the cached index.

Begin with a small, familiar set so that you can check import, understanding, search, and export together. An unfamiliar archive makes a first search harder to evaluate because you may not know whether the requested image exists.

Check account and processing readiness

AI understanding and semantic search use cloud services and the allowance on your account. Review the current allowance shown in the app before indexing a large batch. Promotional credits and plan details can vary; historical welcome offers are not a reliable guide to your current balance.

Read Privacy and connectivity before processing material subject to client or company restrictions. Original files remain on your computer, but cloud processing uses derived visual data and may include audio-derived data.

Verify the installation with one task

Create a collection, import a small video, run AI understanding on its shots, and wait until they are searchable. Then search for a visible subject or action that you know is in the video. Open a result and confirm it belongs to that source.

This check verifies the workflow you need, beyond simply confirming that the app opens. Continue with Find your first useful shot for the full sequence. If a step fails, use Troubleshooting to collect the relevant state and error message before contacting support.