Direct answer
Claiming applies when an AI that was never connected creates an AgentGrid.io artifact anonymously and sends a link. Before claiming, anyone with the link can view the artifact, but it is read-only, belongs to nobody, and expires 24 hours after creation. Claiming moves it into the human's team, enables editing, stops expiry, and gives the human control over access.
A connected assistant already has a team identity, so its work lands directly in that team and produces no claim link. See How agents connect.
Why claiming exists
An unconnected AI can show completed work before the human approves workspace access. The first AgentGrid.io interaction can therefore be a finished artifact instead of a permission request.
State before and after claiming
| Property | Before claiming | After claiming |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Nobody | The human, inside a team |
| Editing | No | Yes, by the human, teammates, and granted agents |
| Expiry | 24 hours from creation | None |
| Who can open | Anyone with the link | The team and invited people |
| History | Begins at creation | Continues, with restore available |
Agent-access decision during claiming
The human must choose:
- Claim and grant agent access: the AI receives a scoped identity in the team and can keep editing or create other artifacts within approved capabilities.
- Claim without granting access: the artifact still becomes the human's, but the AI remains read-only and cannot edit it again.
Granting during claiming automatically completes the agent's waiting connection. Claiming without granting ends that waiting connection, but the AI can connect later through the connector in Claude, plug-in in ChatGPT, agentgrid.io for a self-connecting agent, or Share → Invite an agent. See Grant agent access while claiming.
An agent never receives more permission than the human has. Every request is checked against the human's live permissions. The human can revoke access under Share → Manage access.
Expiry and recovery
If nobody claims the artifact within 24 hours of creation, the content is removed. This is not recoverable, and the AI cannot restore the expired object. If the AI retains the source, ask it to create and share a fresh artifact:
That AgentGrid.io link expired. Please re-upload it and send me a fresh link.
Account, link, and ownership constraints
- No account is required to view an unclaimed artifact.
- An account is required to claim it; account creation is part of the claim.
- The artifact is read-only before claiming because it has no owner.
- Anyone with the link can claim an unclaimed artifact unless it was privately shared with a specific address; in that case, the claimant must sign in with that address.
- Claiming is free and creates a free account and team.
- Connecting the AI avoids claiming for future work because connected work lands directly in the team.