How to get your brokerage API keys

Autopilot needs two pieces of information from your broker: the API Key ID and the API Secret Key. They work like a username and password that let approved Algo Lisa alerts place bracket orders in your own brokerage account. You paste them once into your Autopilot dashboard, where they are encrypted before they touch our database and are never displayed again. No software subscription and no exchange data fees are required for Autopilot.

Building your own bot instead (Builder / Full Setup tier)? Same key steps below — the only difference is you save the keys as secrets inside your own Lovable project rather than in this dashboard.

Option 1: Alpaca (recommended)

Alpaca is our preferred no-commission brokerage of choice. If you do not have an account yet, start at alpaca.markets. It takes a few minutes to create a paper or live account.

1. Sign in to the correct dashboard

Alpaca has separate dashboards for paper and live trading. Sign in at the one that matches the account you want your bot to use. If you are just testing, paper is free and perfect.

Open Alpaca paper dashboard

2. Open the API Keys page

Once inside the dashboard, click your profile icon in the top right corner (or look in the left sidebar) and choose API Keys. Some newer Alpaca layouts show this under Settings > API Keys.

3. Generate a new key pair

Click Generate API Key or Create New Key. Give it a clear name like “Algo Lisa” so you remember what it is for. Alpaca will show you the API Key ID and the API Secret Key exactly once.

4. Copy both values immediately

Copy the Key ID and the Secret Key into a secure place. The Secret Key will be hidden after you leave this page, so if you lose it you will have to generate a new key pair.

5. Paste them into your Autopilot dashboard

Open your Autopilot dashboard, scroll to “Connect your brokerage”, choose Paper or Live to match the keys you just made, paste the Key ID and Secret Key, and click Connect & test. We verify them against Alpaca instantly and show your account equity when it works. Then set your risk rails (max risk per trade, max notional, daily loss cap) and turn Autopilot on.

Open your Autopilot dashboard

6. Builder tier only: save them in your Lovable project

If you are building your own bot instead of using Autopilot, open your project on lovable.dev and type: “Save my Alpaca API keys as secrets called ALPACA_KEY_ID and ALPACA_SECRET_KEY, then connect the broker in paper mode and test the connection.” Lovable opens a secure form — paste the keys there, never into the chat message itself.

Open your Lovable project chat

Option 2: Your own brokerage

You are free to use your own brokerage API keys if your broker supports them. The exact steps differ by broker, but the general flow is the same:

Sign in to your broker and find the API settings page (often called API Access, Developer Keys, or Trading API).
Generate a new API key pair with trading permissions. Make sure it is allowed to place orders and read your account balance.
Autopilot members paste the Key ID and Secret Key into the Autopilot dashboard. Builder members paste them into the secure secret form in their own Lovable project chat.

If your broker is not supported yet, tell us and we will add it based on subscriber demand.

Paper vs. live account

A paper account uses fake money and is perfect for testing how your bot works without risking capital. A live account uses real money. The same API key process works for both. Learn more about the difference at Alpaca’s paper vs. live guide.

Security notes

Autopilot keys are encrypted at rest and only decrypted server-side to place an order you approved. They are never shown again and you can delete them from the dashboard at any time. Builder keys live only in your own Lovable project.
Never type keys into a chat message, a code file, an email, or a public repository — use the dashboard form (or Lovable’s secure secret form) only.
Start with paper keys. Only swap in live keys after your bot has run clean on paper for at least two weeks.
If you ever suspect a key has been exposed, revoke it at your broker and generate a new pair, then update the secret in your Lovable project.

Open your Autopilot dashboard →Back to the Lovable setup guide →

Trading involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for every investor. The Algo Lisa Blueprint is educational software and training only. You own your brokerage account, your API keys and every order your bot places — entirely at your own risk and discretion.