# How to Install the Cotera Snowflake App

> Install Cotera from Snowflake Marketplace, create an API key, approve external access, and call predefined agents from SQL with cotera.agents.agent().

Source: https://cotera.co/articles/install-cotera-snowflake-app
Published: 2026-07-03
Author: TJ Broodryk
7 min read
Categories: Operations

---

The Cotera Snowflake Native App lets you call predefined Cotera agents directly from SQL, and once installed you can use `cotera.agents.agent('<your agent id>', prompt)` to invoke a specific agent by ID or `cotera.coco.chat(prompt)` to invoke Cotera Coco, the default assistant.

* `cotera.agents.agent('<your agent id>', prompt)` — invoke a specific agent by ID
* `cotera.coco.chat(prompt)` — invoke Cotera Coco, the default assistant

Snowflake selects the rows or prompts. Cotera runs the agent over HTTPS and returns the result to your query. This guide walks through installation and configuration — from API key creation through your first test query.

If you already have the app installed and want usage patterns, see [Run AI Agents from Snowflake with Cotera](https://cotera.co/articles/run-ai-agents-from-snowflake.md). For why warehouse-native workflows need a dedicated runtime, see [Why Reliable AI Workflows Are Hard to Run From the Data Warehouse](https://cotera.co/articles/why-reliable-ai-workflows-hard-data-warehouse.md).

## What you need before you start

* A **Cotera account** with at least one agent in your workspace (browse [Solutions](https://cotera.co/solutions.md) for 175+ prebuilt agents, or use your own)
* A **Snowflake account** with permission to install Marketplace apps and approve external access (typically `ACCOUNTADMIN` or an equivalent admin role for first-time setup)
* Your **agent ID** — the UUID of the agent you want to call from SQL (copy it from the agent in Cotera after you add it to your workspace)

The app makes outbound HTTPS calls to `app.cotera.co:443`. Your Snowflake admin will need to approve that external access during setup.

## Step 1: Create a Cotera API key

The Snowflake app authenticates to Cotera using a personal API key, which you should create before installing or configuring the app:

1. Sign in to [Cotera](https://app.cotera.co)
2. Open **Settings** → **API Keys**
3. Click **Create API key**
4. Give the key a name you will recognize (e.g. `snowflake-production`)
5. Copy the key immediately — it is only shown once at creation time

![Create a Cotera API key in Settings → API Keys](https://cotera.co/articles/install-cotera-snowflake-api-keys.png)

API keys grant programmatic access to Cotera public API endpoints, are tied to your user account and inherit your organization access, and should be stored in a secrets manager or Snowflake secret — never committed to source control or pasted into shared documents. The key must have access to invoke agents via the public API (`public-api:access`), so if your org restricts API key scopes, confirm that scope is enabled when you create the key.

## Step 2: Install Cotera from Snowflake Marketplace

1. Open **[Cotera on Snowflake Marketplace](https://app.snowflake.com/marketplace/listing/GZ2FTZ42IY2/cotera-cotera)** (or in **Snowsight**: **Data Products** → **Marketplace** → search for Cotera)
2. Open the **Cotera** listing
3. Click **Get** or **Install** and follow the prompts to install the Native App into your account
4. Choose the warehouse and role the app should use, per your org's Marketplace install workflow

After installation, the app exposes schemas including `cotera.agents` and `cotera.coco` with the SQL functions above.

## Step 3: Configure the app

After install, open the **Cotera** app in **Snowsight** → **Apps** and complete both required references in the setup wizard.

### Cotera API key

Bind a **generic string** secret containing the Cotera API key you created in Step 1 — the wizard prompts you to create a new secret or select an existing one.

### Cotera API access

Approve the **external access integration** for **`app.cotera.co:443`**.

The app needs this permission to make outbound HTTPS requests to the Cotera API. Without it, `cotera.agents.agent()` and `cotera.coco.chat()` fail at the network layer. Both the API key and external access references are required before the SQL functions work.

To rotate your API key later, update the secret bound to the **Cotera API key** reference in the app configuration page.

## Step 4: Run a test query

Confirm everything works with a simple invocation using a warehouse that your role can access:

```sql
USE WAREHOUSE <your_warehouse>;

-- Test a predefined agent (replace with your agent ID)
SELECT cotera.agents.agent(
  '<your agent id>',
  'Analyze whether Notion is growing and who their main competitors are.'
) AS answer;

-- Or test Coco, Cotera's default assistant
SELECT cotera.coco.chat('Say hello in one sentence.') AS answer;
```

For a concrete agent to try, copy the [Company Growth Analyzer](https://app.cotera.co/share/08230017362cbc6164e928f413d067490bd63fd7269926e078ffb6008a3c196d) into your workspace and use its agent ID in the query above.

![Successful agent call in a Snowflake SQL worksheet](https://cotera.co/articles/run-ai-agents-from-snowflake-sql-worksheet.png)

If the call succeeds, you should see the agent's text result in the `answer` column. If it fails, check:

* External access to `app.cotera.co:443` is approved (Cotera API access reference)
* The Cotera API key secret is configured in the app setup wizard
* The agent ID exists in your Cotera organization
* Your warehouse is running and your role has usage on the app

## What gets installed

The Native App creates the SQL functions and configuration references below:

| Object                                  | Purpose                                                                     |
| --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `cotera.agents.agent(agent_id, prompt)` | Calls `POST /api/v1/resource/agent/{id}/invoke` and returns the result text |
| `cotera.coco.chat(prompt)`              | Calls `POST /api/v1/resource/coco/invoke` and returns the result text       |
| Cotera API access reference             | Outbound HTTPS to `app.cotera.co:443` (configured during install)           |
| Cotera API key reference                | Your Bearer token for Cotera API auth (configured during install)           |

Agent runs block until Cotera completes the invocation (up to Snowflake's Python UDF time limit, typically on the order of a few minutes), and very long-running agents may hit that limit — for large batch workloads, consider scheduled runs from the Cotera platform instead. See [Cotera for Enterprise](https://cotera.co/enterprise).

## Next steps

Once the app is installed and configured:

1. Pick agents from [Solutions](https://cotera.co/solutions.md) and copy them into your workspace
2. Use SQL to select which rows or cohorts should trigger agent work — see [Run AI Agents from Snowflake with Cotera](https://cotera.co/articles/run-ai-agents-from-snowflake.md) for row-wise, aggregate, and action patterns
3. Store results in tables, join them to dashboards, or feed downstream pipelines

Snowflake defines the work. Cotera runs the agent. Your API key and external access approval are the bridge between them.

***

## Try These Agents

Browse the full catalog on [Solutions](https://cotera.co/solutions.md), or start with these:

* [Company Growth Analyzer](https://app.cotera.co/share/08230017362cbc6164e928f413d067490bd63fd7269926e078ffb6008a3c196d) — Research company growth, traffic trends, and competitive landscape from a domain
* [Pre-Meeting Research](https://cotera.co/solutions/sales/apollo-lead-research.md) — Research prospects before meetings with LinkedIn and web context
* [Lead Enricher & Qualifier](https://cotera.co/solutions/sales/lead-enricher-qualifier.md) — Qualify leads with structured scoring and CRM sync
* [Market Intelligence Agent](https://cotera.co/solutions/marketing/market-intelligence-agent.md) — Competitive research across hiring, reviews, and news