diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 30bfd11..38deb07 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -18,8 +18,9 @@ workflow — research, code generation, document building, scheduled automation,
 
 - **Node.js** (the version matching the Docker base image, currently 24+)
 - **pnpm** `10.28.0` (the pinned package manager)
-- The **`pi`** agent binary on your `PATH` (or set `PI_BIN` to its location)
-- Access to an LLM proxy for `pi` to call (see `PI_PROXY_URL` / `PI_PROXY_API_KEY` below)
+- The **`pi`** agent binary on your `PATH` (or set `PI_BIN`; `start_local.sh` installs it for you)
+- LLM access for `pi`: a provider key such as `OPENAI_API_KEY` or `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`, or an
+  LLM gateway via `PI_PROXY_URL` / `PI_PROXY_API_KEY` (see below)
 
 ### Install and run
 
diff --git a/apps/server/src/pi/extensions/proxyProvider.ts b/apps/server/src/pi/extensions/proxyProvider.ts
index 31f025c..6bdddc7 100644
--- a/apps/server/src/pi/extensions/proxyProvider.ts
+++ b/apps/server/src/pi/extensions/proxyProvider.ts
@@ -8,16 +8,34 @@
  * is therefore excluded from our type-check (`@ts-nocheck`) and is never
  * imported by the server itself — only passed as a path to the Pi subprocess,
  * which loads it with jiti.
+ *
+ * Two modes, selected by whether an LLM gateway is configured:
+ *
+ * - Gateway — when both `PI_PROXY_URL` and `PI_PROXY_API_KEY` are set, every
+ *   provider is routed through that single proxy via its per-vendor sub-paths
+ *   (the Shopify llm-gateway layout). This is the deployed default.
+ * - Direct — when either is missing, each provider is registered straight
+ *   against its own public API using the well-known key/base-URL env vars
+ *   (`OPENAI_API_KEY`, `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`, …). This lets a plain checkout talk
+ *   to OpenAI/Anthropic without a gateway (see `start_local.sh`).
  */
 
 import type { ExtensionAPI } from "@earendil-works/pi-coding-agent";
 
-// Trailing slash is stripped so per-provider paths concatenate cleanly.
-const PROXY_URL = (process.env.PI_PROXY_URL ?? "").replace(/\/+$/, "");
+const stripSlash = (url: string): string => url.replace(/\/+$/, "");
 
-export default function (pi: ExtensionAPI) {
-  // Managed routes mirror the local shopify-proxy extension so selecting a
-  // built-in model "just works" through the proxy.
+const PROXY_URL = stripSlash(process.env.PI_PROXY_URL ?? "");
+const PROXY_API_KEY = process.env.PI_PROXY_API_KEY ?? "";
+
+// A gateway needs both an endpoint and its credential; without either we fall
+// back to talking to each provider's public API directly.
+const useGateway = PROXY_URL !== "" && PROXY_API_KEY !== "";
+
+/**
+ * Registers the gateway routes — one proxy origin with a per-vendor sub-path per
+ * provider — so selecting any built-in model "just works" through the proxy.
+ */
+function registerGatewayProviders(pi: ExtensionAPI): void {
   pi.registerProvider("anthropic", {
     baseUrl: `${PROXY_URL}/apis/anthropic`,
     apiKey: "$PI_PROXY_API_KEY",
@@ -43,3 +61,66 @@ export default function (pi: ExtensionAPI) {
     apiKey: "$PI_PROXY_API_KEY",
   });
 }
+
+/**
+ * Registers only the providers whose native API key is present, each against its
+ * own public endpoint. Base URLs follow the suffix convention Pi expects and the
+ * gateway routes mirror: the OpenAI-compatible base includes `/v1`; the
+ * Anthropic base does not (Pi appends `/v1/messages`). The `$VAR` apiKey is
+ * resolved from the environment by Pi at request time.
+ */
+function registerDirectProviders(pi: ExtensionAPI): void {
+  if (process.env.OPENAI_API_KEY) {
+    pi.registerProvider("openai", {
+      baseUrl: stripSlash(
+        process.env.OPENAI_BASE_URL ?? "https://api.openai.com/v1",
+      ),
+      apiKey: "$OPENAI_API_KEY",
+    });
+  }
+
+  if (process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY) {
+    pi.registerProvider("anthropic", {
+      baseUrl: stripSlash(
+        process.env.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL ?? "https://api.anthropic.com",
+      ),
+      apiKey: "$ANTHROPIC_API_KEY",
+    });
+  }
+
+  if (process.env.GEMINI_API_KEY || process.env.GOOGLE_API_KEY) {
+    pi.registerProvider("google", {
+      baseUrl: stripSlash(
+        process.env.GOOGLE_BASE_URL ??
+          "https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/openai",
+      ),
+      apiKey: process.env.GEMINI_API_KEY
+        ? "$GEMINI_API_KEY"
+        : "$GOOGLE_API_KEY",
+    });
+  }
+
+  if (process.env.GROQ_API_KEY) {
+    pi.registerProvider("groq", {
+      baseUrl: stripSlash(
+        process.env.GROQ_BASE_URL ?? "https://api.groq.com/openai/v1",
+      ),
+      apiKey: "$GROQ_API_KEY",
+    });
+  }
+
+  if (process.env.XAI_API_KEY) {
+    pi.registerProvider("xai", {
+      baseUrl: stripSlash(process.env.XAI_BASE_URL ?? "https://api.x.ai/v1"),
+      apiKey: "$XAI_API_KEY",
+    });
+  }
+}
+
+export default function (pi: ExtensionAPI) {
+  if (useGateway) {
+    registerGatewayProviders(pi);
+  } else {
+    registerDirectProviders(pi);
+  }
+}
diff --git a/apps/server/src/pi/piAgentManager.ts b/apps/server/src/pi/piAgentManager.ts
index 500cc07..d740e12 100644
--- a/apps/server/src/pi/piAgentManager.ts
+++ b/apps/server/src/pi/piAgentManager.ts
@@ -270,18 +270,37 @@ function buildPiArgs(
   return args;
 }
 
-/** Warns once-per-spawn when the LLM proxy env vars are unset. */
+/**
+ * Whether a native provider key is set, meaning the proxy-provider extension
+ * runs in direct mode and targets a provider's public API rather than a gateway.
+ */
+function hasDirectProviderKey(): boolean {
+  return Boolean(
+    process.env.OPENAI_API_KEY ||
+    process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY ||
+    process.env.GEMINI_API_KEY ||
+    process.env.GOOGLE_API_KEY,
+  );
+}
+
+/**
+ * Warns once-per-spawn when Pi has no usable LLM credentials. In direct mode the
+ * gateway env vars are irrelevant, so their absence is not worth warning about.
+ */
 function warnMissingProxyEnv(): void {
+  if (hasDirectProviderKey()) return;
+
   if (!process.env.PI_PROXY_API_KEY) {
     console.warn(
-      "[pi] PI_PROXY_API_KEY is not set; Pi will fail to reach the LLM gateway. " +
-        "Run `export PI_PROXY_API_KEY=$(devx llm-gateway print-token --key)` before starting the server.",
+      "[pi] No LLM credentials found: set a provider key (e.g. OPENAI_API_KEY or " +
+        "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY) to use a provider directly, or PI_PROXY_API_KEY to use " +
+        "an LLM gateway. Without one, Pi cannot reach a model.",
     );
   }
   if (!process.env.PI_PROXY_URL) {
     console.warn(
       `[pi] PI_PROXY_URL is not set; the proxy-provider extension will default to ${PI_PROXY_URL}. ` +
-        "Set PI_PROXY_URL to point Pi at a different LLM proxy.",
+        "Set PI_PROXY_URL to point Pi at an LLM gateway, or set a provider key for direct access.",
     );
   }
 }