🤖 Connecting Your AI Key: Gemini, Claude Or OpenAI, Fallback And Budget

ResultsAiX Forms uses your own AI key, so you choose the provider, the model and how much you spend. One key from any provider is enough. This guide covers every setting on the Integrations and AI tab that is about AI.

Where to find it:

Open AiX Forms, then the Integrations and AI tab. The AI settings are under the ResultsAiX Mailer and WP Sync cards: AI configuration, Your AI providers, then AI usage.

Getting a key:

Each provider card has a How To Get Your Key In 60 Seconds link. Click it for the steps:

• Google Gemini: open the Google AI Studio API key page, sign in with any Google account and click Create API Key. No credit card is needed for the free tier, which makes it the easiest place to start. The key starts with AIza.
• Anthropic Claude: sign in to the Anthropic console, add a little credit under Billing, then create a key under API Keys. It starts with sk-ant.
• OpenAI: sign in to the OpenAI platform, add credit under Billing if you have none, then click Create new secret key. It starts with sk-.

Adding your key:

1. Paste the key into the API Key box on the provider's card.
2. Pick a Model. The first one in each list is marked recommended.
3. Click Save AI settings at the bottom of the cards.
4. Click the Test button on the card, for example Test Google Gemini connection. A tick and "Connected to Google Gemini" with the model confirms it works.

The card's pill changes from No key to Connected. Your key is stored in your own WordPress database and never sent to us. After saving, the box shows dots instead of your key: paste a new key to replace it, or clear the box and save to remove it.

AI configuration:

• Enable AI features: the main switch for "Describe it, AI builds it" and AI Insights.
• Primary provider: which provider is asked first. Auto (first provider with a key) is fine with one key. When you save a new key and your primary has no key, the primary switches to the new one for you.
• Fallback provider (optional): asked automatically if the primary fails, for example during an outage or a rate limit. Pick a different provider from the primary.
• Monthly soft budget (USD): leave it empty or at 0 for no budget. When the estimated spend of the last 30 days reaches it, the usage panel, the builder and AI Insights show a heads up. AI keeps working; hard limits are set with your provider.

A real example:

Northfield Renovations uses Google Gemini as the primary provider and Claude as the fallback. Two weeks ago Gemini was busy for a moment during an AI Insights run; the plugin asked Claude instead and the insights arrived. The usage table shows the Gemini error with its reason, followed by the Claude job that completed.

Advanced: a custom API address:

Click Advanced under the provider cards to see a Custom API address box for each provider. Leave these empty to connect directly, which is right for almost everyone. Fill one in only if you send AI requests through your own gateway or proxy. The address must start with https:// (http:// is accepted only for localhost or a .local name) and must not contain a ? or # part. If an address is not accepted, a message says so, the previous address is kept and the rest of your settings are still saved. An address set in wp-config.php is shown here too.

AI usage:

The AI usage panel has four numbers: Total jobs, Last 30 days, Spend (30d) and Errors (30d). Costs are estimates from the providers' published per token prices; your provider's dashboard is the source of truth.

Recent AI jobs lists the last ten calls with Type (generate_form or insights), Status, Model, Cost, Duration and When. A job that failed shows a Why line with the provider's own words. A model with no published price shows "price unknown" rather than a guess.

When a call does not work:

• The card shows its Last error in red until the next call to that provider works.
• If the most recent job failed, a Last AI error box shows above the table and clears on the next success.
• When both the primary and the fallback fail, the message leads with the primary's reason, then the fallback's, each in the provider's own words.
• The error log on the Diagnostics tab records AI errors too.

Choosing a model:

Each provider card has a Model dropdown. The first model in each list is marked recommended and is a good everyday choice. Faster, cheaper models suit form drafting; higher quality models can give richer insights on large forms.

Testing a key, step by step:

1. Save the key first: Test uses the saved key, not what is typed in the box.
2. Click the Test button on the card.
3. A green tick and "Connected to" the provider with the model means it works.
4. A red line gives the reason in the provider's own words, for example a wrong key or no credit, with what to do next.

Using two providers:

1. Add a key on two cards, for example Google Gemini and Anthropic Claude.
2. In AI configuration, set Primary provider to the one you want first.
3. Set Fallback provider (optional) to the other.
4. Click Save AI settings.

When the primary fails, the fallback is asked straight away, and the job appears in Recent AI jobs under the provider that answered.

Removing a key:

Clear the API Key box on the card and click Save AI settings. The card goes back to No key. If it was your primary provider, choose another, or leave Auto (first provider with a key).

Switching AI off:

Untick Enable AI features and click Save AI settings. The AI box disappears from the builder and the Analyze with AI button from AI Insights. Your keys stay saved for later, and saved insights stay on each form.

What the usage numbers mean:

• Total jobs: every AI call since the plugin was installed.
• Last 30 days: calls in the last 30 days.
• Spend (30d): the estimated cost of those calls, from the providers' published prices.
• Errors (30d): calls that failed in the last 30 days.

Where your key is kept:

Keys are stored in your own WordPress database, scrambled so they are not saved as plain text, and are never sent to ResultsAiX. The page never prints a saved key back: you only see dots and the last four characters. The Copy Report for Support on Diagnostics never includes keys.

How long a call can take:

Drafting a form usually takes 10 to 30 seconds and an analysis a little longer. The plugin waits up to two minutes for a reply, and the progress popup tells you to keep the tab open. If your server or a service in front of it closes long requests early, the plugin collects the finished answer once it is ready.

Tips:

• Start with Google Gemini's free tier, then add a second provider as the fallback.
• Use Test connection after every key change.
• Set a soft budget so you get a heads up before a busy month surprises you.