How to use Brainio.

Brainio is a Markdown-powered notepad that turns every note into a visual mind map. You write in a rich text editor and can switch to a mind map view at any time to see how your ideas connect.

Your first steps

1. Create a new document by clicking New document in the sidebar or pressing Cmd+N.
2. Start typing. Use Markdown syntax or the toolbar to format your text.
3. Switch between Text, Split, and Mind map views using the toggle in the top toolbar.
4. Organize your document into a folder by dragging it in the sidebar or right-clicking to move it.

Brainio supports Markdown formatting. You can type Markdown syntax directly or use the toolbar. You don’t need to know Markdown to use Brainio.

Colors

You can highlight text in 6 colors (green, blue, purple, red, orange, yellow) or color entire blocks like headings and paragraphs. Select text and pick a color from the toolbar, or select a block and apply a background color.

Links

Brainio supports two types of links:

• Document links: Type [[ and select a document from the dropdown. These create bidirectional backlinks, so both documents know they ’re connected.
• External links: Use the link button in the toolbar or paste a URL onto selected text.

The mind map view is a visual representation of your document. The structure is determined by indentation in the text editor.

How text becomes a mind map

• The document title becomes the central (root) node.
• Each top-level line becomes a direct branch from the root.
• Indented lines (Tab key or bullet sub-items) become child nodes of the line above.
• Headings (H1–H6) are formatting only. They don’t create a new hierarchy level. Use indentation for structure.

Floating nodes

Press Alt+F in the mind map view to create a floating node. Floating nodes are independent branches not connected to the main tree. You can also detach any existing node with Alt+D.

Collapsing nodes

Press Cmd+\ to collapse or expand a node and all its children. This works in both the text editor and the mind map view.

Drag and drop

In the mind map view, you can drag nodes to rearrange them. Drop a node onto another to make it a child, or between siblings to reorder.

You can upload images and files directly into your documents.

• Drag and drop an image or file into the editor, or use the toolbar buttons.
• Images render inline in your document and can be resized by dragging the corners.
• Files (PDFs, documents, etc.) appear as downloadable attachments in your note.
• All uploads are stored securely and accessible from any device where you’re signed in.

Organize your documents using folders in the sidebar.

Creating folders

Right-click in the sidebar and select New folder. You can nest folders inside other folders for deeper organization.

Customizing folders

• Colors: Right-click a folder and pick a color (green, blue, purple, red, orange, yellow).
• Icons: Choose from hundreds of built-in icons to visually distinguish folders.
• Pin: Pin important folders to the top of the sidebar.

Documents in multiple folders

A document can belong to multiple folders at once. This lets you tag and cross-reference documents without duplicating them. Folder tags appear as colored chips in the document list.

Special folders

• All documents: Shows every document across all folders.
• Uncategorized: Documents not assigned to any folder.
• Bin: Deleted documents. You can restore or permanently delete them.

Sharing with accounts

Click the Share button in the top toolbar to invite people by email. You can set permissions:

• Owner: Full control, can manage sharing. A document can have multiple owners.
• Editor: Can edit the document.
• Viewer: Can view but not edit.

Real-time editing

When multiple people are editing the same document, you ’ll see their cursors with names in real time. Changes sync instantly. No conflicts, no saving needed.

Public sharing

You can generate a public link to share a read-only version of your mind map with anyone. No Brainio account needed. Anyone with the link can view the document in their browser.

Export your documents in multiple formats. Click the export button in the top toolbar.

• PNG: Image of your mind map or text document.
• PDF: Printable document.
• Markdown: Plain text Markdown file.
• Plain text: Raw text without formatting.

The export format adapts to your current view. In mind map view, you get a visual export. In text view, you get a text-based export. Uploaded files and images are included in the export where supported.

Brainio stores your documents locally using IndexedDB. You can view and edit your notes without an internet connection. When you’re back online, changes sync automatically in the background.

Brainio has a built-in Model Context Protocol (MCP) server. This lets AI assistants connect to your Brainio workspace and work with your notes directly.

Compatible clients

• Claude Desktop and claude.ai
• Claude Code (CLI)
• ChatGPT
• Cursor
• Windsurf
• Any MCP-compatible client

Setup for Claude Desktop

1. Open Claude Desktop and go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config.
2. Add the Brainio server to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brainio": {
      "url": "https://api.brainio.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop.
4. Claude will ask you to authorize access to your Brainio account on first use. Sign in and approve.

Setup for Claude Code (CLI)

Run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add brainio --transport http https://api.brainio.com/mcp

Claude Code will prompt you to authorize on first use.

Setup for Claude.ai

1. Go to claude.ai and open Settings → Integrations.
2. Click Add Custom Integration.
3. Set the URL to https://api.brainio.com/mcp and select Streamable HTTP as the transport.
4. Click through the OAuth authorization to connect your Brainio account.

Available on Claude Pro and Team plans.

Setup for Cursor

1. Open Cursor and go to Settings → MCP Servers → Add Server.
2. Set the URL to:

https://api.brainio.com/mcp

3. Save and restart Cursor. Authorize on first use.

What AI can do

Once connected, your AI assistant can:

• Read and search across all your documents
• Create new documents and nodes
• Edit existing content
• Organize documents into folders
• Summarize mind maps
• Find connections between your notes

Available tools (17)

Press Cmd+/ to view all shortcuts inside the app. On Windows and Linux, replace Cmd with Ctrl.

General

Text Editor

Mind Map