---
title: Start with Sift
description: Choose the shortest honest path to a first grounded result.
product: start
lifecycle: stable
appliesTo: current public interfaces
sourceArtifact: docs-site@v1
owner: Sift docs
raw: /raw/start/overview.md
---

Sift is a shared, cited brain. It accumulates context from documents, integrations, conversations, code, and agent work so people and agents can retrieve and act from the same permission-bounded evidence.

- [Build application memory](/memory-sdk/preview/)
- [Connect an agent](/connect/hosted-mcp/)
- [Work from a terminal](/cli/install/)

## A successful first result

- Memory SDK: sync one stable item, wait for its operation, recall grounded context, and resolve a citation. This route is not public yet.
- Hosted MCP: authorize a workspace-scoped endpoint, refresh tools, call `contract.get`, then make a grounded read.
- CLI: install a pinned public package, sign in, run `sift doctor`, then ask a grounded question.