---
title: Agents and models
description: Which agents Admiral runs, and how switching works.
section: Concepts
order: 2
---

# Agents and models

Two words carry this page:

- An **agent** is a coding assistant program that reads, edits, and runs code. OpenCode, Claude Code, and Gemini are agents.
- A **model** is the AI model an agent uses to think. One agent can run many models.

Admiral is the control station. It is not an agent itself.

## The agents

| Agent | Status | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| OpenCode | Primary | The default agent. Admiral provides a working copy when your machine has none. |
| Claude Code | Native, first class | Sign in with your Claude account. Claude models selected in Admiral run here. |
| Gemini | Native, first class | Runs on Antigravity, shown as Gemini. Sign in on each device. |

## Models

- Claude models run on Claude Code.
- Gemini models run on Antigravity, displayed as Gemini.
- OpenCode runs OpenCode models, including the built-in free models.

Sessions that earlier versions of Admiral ran on other agents stay readable.

## Switching

Two switching behaviors exist, and they are deliberately different:

- **Same agent, new model:** the session resumes with the new model. Nothing is lost.
- **New agent:** the agent starts a fresh native session. Admiral hands it a compact summary of verified project facts. The visible transcript stays, but the new agent has no access to the old agent's hidden reasoning or internal tool state.

## Runtime management

Admiral manages the agent runtimes so you do not:

- It starts and shares agent processes per project folder.
- It provides OpenCode when the machine has no supported release, with setup status in Settings.
- It recovers a run after an engine restart instead of losing it.

Sign-in, enablement, and usage meters for all of this live on the Providers settings page. See [Settings pages](../reference/settings.md).

## Next steps

- [Switch agents and models](../guides/switch-agents-and-models.md): the task guide.
- [Where your data lives](where-your-data-lives.md): what the agents may touch.