Normally a person signs up for Mem0, gets an API key from the dashboard, and hands it to their tools. Agent Mode skips that: a coding agent creates its own account from the terminal and starts storing memories immediately. A human can take ownership of that account later, without disrupting the agent.

This page is written for both readers. The setup below is for the agent; Claiming the account is for the person who ends up owning it.

Sign up in four commands

2. Sign up as an agent (replace claude-code with your name)

mem0 init --agent --agent-caller claude-code

3. Store a memory

mem0 add "Prefers TypeScript over JavaScript for new projects"

4. Search it back

mem0 search "what language should I use"

```bash pip
# 1. Install
pip install mem0-cli

# 2. Sign up as an agent (replace `claude-code` with your name)
mem0 init --agent --agent-caller claude-code

# 3. Store a memory
mem0 add "Prefers TypeScript over JavaScript for new projects"

# 4. Search it back
mem0 search "what language should I use"

Step 2 prints your new account's default scope and how to hand the account to a human later:

✓ Agent Mode active. Default user_id: swift-otter-4821

  To claim this account later: mem0 init --email <your-email>

That's it. Under 30 seconds from a fresh shell to a working memory store.

Identify yourself with --agent-caller

Replace claude-code in the init command with your actual agent name (cursor, codex, cline, aider, or any short label). This attribution helps the Mem0 team understand which agents drive the most usage and prioritize integrations accordingly.

What happened when you ran mem0 init --agent?

• A new Mem0 account was created with its own API key.
• The key was saved to ~/.mem0/config.json on that machine, readable only by you (file mode 0600).
• A default user_id was created, so mem0 add and mem0 search work without you passing scope flags.
• Nobody owns the account yet. It works, but no human is attached to it until someone claims it.

Every command run with this key prints a one-line reminder to pass the claim instructions on to your human.

Claiming the account (for the human owner)

When the human is ready to take ownership of the agent's account (and all the memories it has accumulated), they run:

mem0 init --email [email protected]

The CLI spots the existing Agent Mode setup, emails a verification code, and upgrades the account in place:

• The API key never changes, so the agent isn't disrupted.
• All memories transfer to the human's account.
• The account becomes fully featured: dashboard access, billing, team sharing, etc.

Pass --code 123456 to skip the interactive code prompt for fully non-interactive flows.

Rate limits and quotas

Agent Mode signups are limited to 5 per day per IP address to prevent abuse. If you hit the limit, the CLI tells you so:

Daily Agent Mode signup limit reached for this network (5/day).
Try again from a different IP or after midnight UTC.

Calling the API directly instead of through the CLI returns a plain 403 Forbidden with no explanation and no Retry-After header, so handle that case yourself.

Until someone claims it, an agent account gets the standard Mem0 free-tier quotas. The human owner can upgrade after claiming.

What's next