User Guide: Model Preferences¶

Overview¶

Model Preferences let you control which AI models Magieva uses when completing your tasks. You can choose from curated presets, dynamically updated top-performing models, or build your own custom selections across 15 different task categories.

Why Use Model Preferences?¶

Quality control – ensure tasks use models that meet your standards
Cost management – select cost-effective models for routine tasks
Specialization – use models suited to specific categories (e.g., coding, image generation)
Team consistency – organizations can standardize model usage across teams
Flexibility – override organization settings with your own personal preferences

Understanding the Preference Hierarchy¶

Magieva uses a layered preference system:

Your Preferences > Project Preferences > Organization Preferences > System Default

Your Preferences (highest priority)
Set on your personal Settings page
Overrides all other levels
Choose "Inherit" to defer to your project or organization instead
Project Preferences
Set by project owners
Applies when you choose "Inherit" mode
Can also inherit from the organization
Organization Preferences
Set by organization admins
Applies when a project is set to "Inherit" mode
Helps keep model usage consistent across a team
System Default (fallback)
The "Magieva Recommended" preset
Used automatically when no other preferences are configured

Example¶

Organization: Uses "Magieva Recommended" preset
   ↓
Project A: Inherits from organization → Uses "Magieva Recommended"
   ↓
User Alice: Inherits from project → Uses "Magieva Recommended"
User Bob: Has custom selections → Uses Bob's own models (overrides the organization)

Selection Modes¶

You can choose from four selection modes.

1. Inherit (Default)¶

Uses the preferences set at your project or organization level.

Best for: new users, teams that want consistency, or anyone who doesn't want to manage preferences directly.

How to use: 1. Go to Settings → Model Preferences 2. Select Inherit from project/organization 3. The preview shows which models you'll inherit 4. Click Save Changes

Example preview:

Inheriting from: Organization (Magieva Recommended)

Overall: Claude Sonnet 4, GPT-4o, GPT-4 Turbo, Claude Opus 4, GPT-4o Mini
Coding: Claude Sonnet 4, GPT-4o, Claude Opus 4, Codestral 25.08, GPT-4 Turbo
Vision: GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet 4, Gemini Pro 1.5 Vision, GPT-4 Vision, Claude Opus 4
...

2. Preset¶

Uses a curated set of models per category, chosen to give balanced performance.

Best for: users who want expert-curated, reliable selections without manual tuning.

Available presets: - Magieva Recommended (default) – balanced quality, speed, and cost - Premium Performance – highest-quality models - Cost Optimized – value-focused models - Specialized – custom presets your organization admins may create

How to use: 1. Go to Settings → Model Preferences 2. Select Use a preset 3. Choose a preset from the dropdown 4. Click Preview Effective Models to see the models used per category 5. Click Save Changes

3. Dynamic¶

Automatically uses the top-performing models per category, based on real-time leaderboard data.

Best for: users who want cutting-edge performance and are comfortable with model selections changing over time.

How it works: - Refreshed daily at 2 AM UTC - Models are ranked by performance - Top performers per category are selected automatically

Trade-offs: - Model selections may change day to day - Newer models may occasionally have rough edges - Top-tier models can cost more — check the pricing page for details

How to use: 1. Go to Settings → Model Preferences 2. Select Use dynamic top performers 3. A badge confirms it updates daily at 2 AM UTC 4. Click Preview Effective Models to see the current top picks 5. Click Save Changes

4. Custom¶

Manually select models for each category, in priority order.

Best for: power users with specific model preferences or specialized workflows.

How to use: 1. Go to Settings → Model Preferences 2. Select Create custom selections 3. You'll see a tab for each of the 15 categories 4. For each category you want to configure: - Click Add Model - Search by model name (e.g., "GPT-4o", "Claude") - Select the models you want, in priority order - Drag to reorder priority 5. Click Save Changes

Tips: - You don't need to configure every category — unconfigured categories fall back to your "overall" selection - Start with the categories you use most (overall, coding, reasoning) - Add models incrementally as you refine your preferences

15 Task Categories¶

Magieva classifies tasks into 15 categories. Your preferences determine which models are used for each one.

Category	Description	Example Tasks
overall	General-purpose tasks	General questions, conversation, analysis
coding	Code generation and review	Write functions, debug code, refactor
vision	Image understanding	Analyze screenshots, describe images
reasoning	Logic and problem-solving	Research, decision-making, analysis
text_to_image	Text → Image generation	Create logos, illustrations, diagrams
image_to_image	Image → Image transformation	Edit photos, apply styles, upscale
text_to_video	Text → Video generation	Create animations, video clips
image_to_video	Image → Video generation	Animate images, create motion
audio	Audio processing	Transcription, text-to-speech
embeddings	Semantic search	Find similar documents, search
translation	Language translation	Translate text between languages
summarization	Text summarization	Summarize documents, meetings
agent	Autonomous actions	Multi-step tasks, planning
multimodal	Mixed media tasks	Text + image + audio combined
search	Web and data search	Research, fact-checking

Fallback: If a category isn't configured, Magieva uses the models from your "overall" category.

Step-by-Step: Configure Your Preferences¶

Accessing Settings¶

Log in to Magieva at app.magieva.com
Click your avatar in the top-right corner
Select Settings from the dropdown
Click the Model Preferences tab

Method 1: Use a Preset (Recommended for Most Users)¶

Select the Use a preset card
Choose from the dropdown:
Magieva Recommended (default)
Other presets your admins may have created
Click Preview Effective Models to see the models chosen per category
Click Save Changes

Method 2: Use Dynamic Top Performers¶

Select the Use dynamic top performers card
Click Preview Effective Models to see the current top picks
Click Save Changes

Method 3: Create Custom Selections¶

Select the Create custom selections card
Click a category tab (start with Overall)
Click Add Model
Type a model name in the search box (e.g., "Claude Sonnet 4")
Click the model to add it
Drag models to reorder priority (top = highest priority)
Click the X to remove a model
Repeat for other categories (or leave a category blank to use "overall")
Click Save Changes

Tips: - Focus on the categories you use most (overall, coding, reasoning) - Use search filters such as "Provider: OpenAI" or "Provider: Anthropic" - A counter shows your progress as you add selections

Method 4: Inherit from Organization (Default)¶

Select the Inherit from project/organization card
The preview shows the source (e.g., Organization: Magieva Recommended) and the models you'll inherit
Click Save Changes

Viewing Effective Models¶

After saving your preferences, you can always check which models will be used:

Go to Settings → Model Preferences
Click Preview Effective Models
Expand any category to see the models selected for it
A source indicator shows where the selection came from, for example:
"User (Preset: Magieva Recommended)" – you set a preset
"User (Dynamic)" – you're using dynamic mode
"User (Custom)" – you have custom selections
"Organization (Preset: Magieva Recommended)" – inherited from your organization

Organization Settings (Admins Only)¶

If you're an organization owner or admin, you can configure organization-wide preferences.

Accessing Organization Settings¶

Click your avatar in the top-right corner
Select Organization from the dropdown
Click the Model Preferences tab

Configure Organization Preferences¶

Choose a selection mode (Preset, Dynamic, or Custom)
Configure the preferences (same options as user settings)
Toggle Allow users to override (recommended: on)
Click Save Changes

Any user who has their own preferences set to "Inherit" will use these organization-wide settings.

Best Practices for Org Admins¶

Start with a preset — "Magieva Recommended" is a solid default
Allow overrides so power users can customize their own preferences
Review your preset choice periodically and update as needed
Communicate any changes to your team before rolling them out
Test changes on a single project before applying them organization-wide

Frequently Asked Questions¶

Which selection mode should I use?¶

New users: "Inherit" (default)
Most users: "Preset" (Magieva Recommended)
Early adopters: "Dynamic" (cutting-edge)
Power users: "Custom" (full control)

How often do dynamic models change?¶

Dynamic selections refresh daily at 2 AM UTC, so you automatically get the latest top-performing models each day.

Can I mix and match — e.g., a preset for most categories, custom for coding?¶

Not currently. You choose one selection mode that applies to all 15 categories. With custom mode, however, you can leave most categories unconfigured and they'll fall back to your "overall" selection.

What happens if all my preferred models are unavailable?¶

Magieva automatically falls back gracefully: 1. Tries your preferred models first 2. If none are available, uses its standard model-selection algorithm 3. If that also fails, uses any available model with the required capabilities

Your tasks will always complete, even if your first-choice models are temporarily unavailable.

Do my preferences affect my teammates?¶

No. Your personal preferences only affect tasks you create. Your teammates each have their own separate preferences.

Can I see which model was used for a specific task?¶

This is planned for a future release. Task details are expected to show the task category, the model used, and the reason it was selected.

How do I reset to defaults?¶

Go to Settings → Model Preferences
Select Inherit from project/organization
Click Save Changes

This reverts you to your organization's settings (usually "Magieva Recommended").

What if my organization doesn't have preferences set?¶

You'll inherit the system default — the "Magieva Recommended" preset, maintained by the Magieva team.

Can I see leaderboard rankings?¶

Not yet — this is planned for a future release.

How does my choice affect cost?¶

Cost varies by selection mode and the specific models involved: - Preset (Magieva Recommended): balanced cost - Dynamic: can cost more, since top-ranked models are often premium options - Custom: depends entirely on the models you choose - Inherit: matches whatever your organization has configured

For current model and plan pricing, see the pricing page. Choosing a "Cost Optimized" preset (where available) can help reduce costs.

Troubleshooting¶

"No effective models found"¶

Possible causes: - Organization preferences haven't been configured - A temporary service issue

Fix: 1. Try selecting a different selection mode (Preset or Dynamic) 2. Contact your organization admin 3. If the issue persists, contact Magieva support

Changes not taking effect¶

Possible causes: - A short delay before new preferences take effect - Browser cache - A task was already queued before you saved your changes

Fix: 1. Wait a few minutes and try creating a new task 2. Hard-refresh your browser (Cmd+Shift+R on Mac, Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows) 3. Use Preview Effective Models to confirm your preferences were saved

"Permission denied" on organization settings¶

Cause: You're not an organization owner or admin.

Fix: Ask your organization owner to grant you admin access or to configure organization preferences on your behalf.

Search results empty when adding custom models¶

Possible causes: - A typo in the search query - The model isn't currently available - The category filter is too narrow

Fix: 1. Try a shorter search term (e.g., "GPT" instead of "GPT-4o") 2. Double-check the model name spelling (e.g., "Claude Sonnet 4") 3. Try a different category 4. Contact Magieva support if you believe a model should be available

Need Help?¶

In-app support: click the ? icon in the bottom-right corner
Documentation: https://docs.magieva.com
Email: support@magieva.com