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SENTi-radar uses environment variables to configure API keys, database connections, and third-party integrations. This guide covers all required and optional environment variables.

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Quick Setup

1

Copy the example file

Create your local environment file from the template:
cp .env.example .env
2

Configure required variables

At minimum, set your Supabase credentials and Scrape.do token:
VITE_SUPABASE_URL=https://your-project.supabase.co
VITE_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=your-supabase-anon-key
VITE_SCRAPE_TOKEN=your-scrape-do-token
3

Add optional API keys

Configure additional services for enhanced functionality:
VITE_YOUTUBE_API_KEY=your-youtube-data-api-key
VITE_GEMINI_API_KEY=your-gemini-api-key
VITE_GROQ_API_KEY=your-groq-api-key
Never commit your .env file to version control. The .gitignore file already excludes it, but always double-check before pushing code.

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Client-Side Variables

These variables are prefixed with VITE_ and are bundled into your frontend application. They’re exposed to the browser, so never use secret keys here.

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Required Variables

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VITE_SUPABASE_URL
string
required
Your Supabase project URL. Find this in your Supabase project settings under Project Settings → API.Example: https://owrqiailcuwlzxeekhms.supabase.co
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VITE_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY
string
required
Supabase anonymous/public key (safe to expose in browser). Find this in Project Settings → API as the anon public key.Example: eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9...
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VITE_SCRAPE_TOKEN
string
default:"none"
Scrape.do API token — enables live X (Twitter) and Reddit data scraping.
  • Get your token: scrape.do
  • Used by: TopicDetail.tsx (client-side) and fetch-twitter edge function
  • Without this: The app falls back to YouTube, Parallel.ai (if configured), or algorithmic generation
Example: abc123def456scrapetoken789

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Optional Variables

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VITE_OPENAI_API_KEY
string
default:"none"
OpenAI API key for GPT-4o mini AI insights (Tier 1 - highest quality).
  • Get your key: OpenAI Platform
  • Model used: gpt-4o-mini
  • Used by: Client-side AI insights panel for strategic analysis and chat
  • Fallback chain: OpenAI → Gemini → Groq → Local
Example: sk-proj-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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VITE_YOUTUBE_API_KEY
string
default:"none"
YouTube Data API v3 key for fetching video titles and comments.
  • Get your key: Google Cloud Console → APIs & Services → Credentials
  • Enable: YouTube Data API v3
  • Used by: Client-side YouTube search and fetch-youtube edge function
Example: AIzaSyDxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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VITE_GEMINI_API_KEY
string
default:"none"
Google Gemini API key for streaming AI summaries and sentiment analysis (Tier 2).
  • Get your key: Google AI Studio
  • Model used: gemini-2.0-flash
  • Fallback: Local keyword-based analysis engine (always available)
Example: AIzaSyCxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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VITE_GROQ_API_KEY
string
default:"none"
Groq API key for streaming summaries via Supabase edge function (Tier 3).
  • Get your key: Groq Console
  • Model used: llama-3.3-70b-versatile
  • Used by: Supabase generate-insights edge function
Example: gsk_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The app uses a guaranteed local keyword-based analysis engine as a fallback when no LLM keys are provided. AI keys enhance accuracy but are not required for basic functionality.

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Edge Function Secrets

These variables are server-side only and must be set via Supabase CLI. They are never exposed to the browser.
Do NOT add these to your .env file. Set them using the Supabase CLI:
supabase secrets set SCRAPE_DO_TOKEN=your-token
supabase secrets set GEMINI_API_KEY=your-key

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Setting Secrets

# Set individual secrets
supabase secrets set SCRAPE_DO_TOKEN=your-scrape-do-token
supabase secrets set GEMINI_API_KEY=your-gemini-api-key
supabase secrets set YOUTUBE_API_KEY=your-youtube-key
supabase secrets set PARALLEL_API_KEY=your-parallel-key

# Set Supabase credentials
supabase secrets set SUPABASE_URL=https://your-project.supabase.co
supabase secrets set SUPABASE_SERVICE_ROLE_KEY=your-service-role-key

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Secret Variables Reference

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SCRAPE_DO_TOKEN
string
Scrape.do API token used by the fetch-twitter edge function for server-side scraping.Functions using this:
  • fetch-twitter (primary data source)
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PARALLEL_API_KEY
string
Parallel.ai API key for fallback social search when Scrape.do is unavailable.Functions using this:
  • fetch-twitter (secondary fallback)
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YOUTUBE_API_KEY
string
YouTube Data API v3 key for server-side video and comment fetching.Functions using this:
  • fetch-youtube
  • fetch-twitter (tertiary fallback)
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GEMINI_API_KEY
string
Google Gemini API key for server-side sentiment analysis and AI summary generation.Functions using this:
  • analyze-sentiment (primary analysis engine)
  • generate-insights
  • analyze-topic
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SUPABASE_URL
string
required
Your Supabase project URL (same as VITE_SUPABASE_URL but for edge functions).Example: https://owrqiailcuwlzxeekhms.supabase.co
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SUPABASE_SERVICE_ROLE_KEY
string
required
Supabase service role key with elevated permissions for database operations in edge functions.
This key bypasses Row Level Security (RLS). Never expose it in client-side code.
Find this in Supabase Project Settings → API as the service_role secret key.

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Environment File Structure

Here’s the complete .env.example structure with annotations: 
# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
# Supabase (required for database + edge functions)
# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
VITE_SUPABASE_URL=https://your-project.supabase.co
VITE_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=your-supabase-anon-key

# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
# Scrape.do  (required for live X/Twitter and Reddit scraping)
# Get your free API token at https://scrape.do/
# Used by: TopicDetail.tsx (client-side) and fetch-twitter edge function
# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
VITE_SCRAPE_TOKEN=your-scrape-do-token

# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
# YouTube Data API v3  (optional — for fetching video titles & comments)
# Get a key at https://console.cloud.google.com/
# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
VITE_YOUTUBE_API_KEY=your-youtube-data-api-key

# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
# Gemini AI  (optional — for streaming AI summaries; falls back to local)
# Get a key at https://ai.google.dev/
# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
VITE_GEMINI_API_KEY=your-gemini-api-key

# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
# Groq  (optional — secondary LLM for streaming summaries)
# Get a key at https://console.groq.com/
# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
VITE_GROQ_API_KEY=your-groq-api-key

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Validation

After configuring your environment variables, verify they’re loaded correctly: 
npm run dev
Check the browser console for:
  • Supabase connection status
  • API key availability warnings
  • Scrape.do token validation
Missing optional API keys will trigger fallback mechanisms. The app degrades gracefully:
  1. No Scrape.do token: Falls back to Parallel.ai → YouTube → Algorithmic generation
  2. No AI keys: Uses local keyword-based sentiment analysis
  3. No YouTube key: Skips video comment analysis

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Troubleshooting

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Variables not loading

  1. Ensure your .env file is in the project root (same directory as package.json)
  2. Restart the dev server after changing .env
  3. Check for typos in variable names (they’re case-sensitive)

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Supabase connection fails

  1. Verify your project URL doesn’t have trailing slashes
  2. Confirm you’re using the anon key, not the service_role key for client variables
  3. Check your Supabase project is active and not paused

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Scrape.do returns errors

  1. Verify your token is active at scrape.do dashboard
  2. Check your credit balance
  3. Review rate limits and quota usage

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Edge function secrets not working

  1. Ensure you’ve deployed your functions: supabase functions deploy
  2. Verify secrets are set: supabase secrets list
  3. Check function logs: supabase functions logs fetch-twitter

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Next Steps

Supabase Setup

Configure your Supabase project and database schema

Scrape.do Integration

Set up live social media scraping

API Keys

Get API keys for YouTube, Gemini, and Groq

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