Connectors before the browser

How this helps you

Using a connector instead of clicking through websites can make the same task much cheaper and more reliable.

✦ Try it

Before you start, check whether a connector can do this job. Use connectors first and the browser only for steps they can't do. Tell me which you used for each step. If a step fails 3 times, stop and tell me.

What they did

@grokbotusecases reports a user who burned through limits in 2 days made the same task about 45x cheaper with a connector. Their rule: run routines 2-3 times a day and stop if a step fails 3 times. From the 101 workshop, via @tibor_tee: connectors first, computer use when they fall short.

Who it's for: Anyone whose usage runs out early in the week.

How to try it

Before a new task, ask the Bot whether a connector covers it.
Connect it from Connect apps, or from the connect card in chat.
Use the browser or computer use only for the steps a connector can't do.
For routines, cap retries: stop after a step fails 3 times.

What to expect

The Bot tells you which steps used a connector and which needed the browser.

Common mistakes

Letting the Bot click through a website that has a connector.
Retrying a failing browser step forever.

Related tips

Connect your apps from chat, or through one MCP hub: Ask a Bot to connect Gmail and other accounts in chat, or use one Composio or Zapier account if you have many tools.
Let your Bot ask for the access it needs: Describe the job first. The Bot tells you which tool to connect and walks you through it.
Check usage and update your Bot's computer in Settings: Where to see how much of your weekly usage is left, and when to update or reset the Bot's cloud computer.
Build a Tesla Bot with Tesla's Fleet API: A Bot that checks your Tesla, runs climate and charging, and asks before it unlocks anything, set up through Tesla's free developer Fleet API.
Expense Bot: inbox receipts into a Notion table: Sonny Sangha's expense Bot scans two inboxes for receipts, logs them in Notion, and learns to fetch portal invoices with Teach a task.
Make your Bots read websites with a script, not screenshots: One test: 213K tokens by clicking around, 51K with a browser script, almost none with a plain script. Give your Bots the rule.
Keep long jobs sharp: helpers, files and the cheapest tool first: How the Grok Bot harness avoids running out of context, and how to ask for work in the same shape.
Teach a task the smart way: describe it first, record only the gap: Most of a browser job can be explained in chat. Record a 20 to 60 second clip of only the part the Bot can't work out, then add anti-jobs before you schedule it.