# Linear chat interfaces are fundamentally broken for complex > Source: > Published: 2026-08-26 21:39:22+00:00 # Linear chat interfaces are fundamentally broken for complex Instead of a vertical scroll, you get a tree-based workflow. Every prompt and response acts as a node that you can branch out from. If you have a prompt that gets you 80% of the way there, you don't have to start over; you just create a new branch from that specific node to iterate on the remaining 20%. This spatial approach makes it much easier to visualize the evolution of a thought process or a piece of code. ## How the canvas workflow actually functions The core concept here is non-linear progression. In a typical chat, if you ask an LLM to "write a Python script" and then "add error handling," you are locked into that specific sequence. With a canvas-based AI workflow, you can do something much more powerful: 1. **Branching:** You can take a single successful response and split it into three different directions simultaneously to see which path yields the best result. 2. **Model Comparison:** Since you can bring your own API keys, you aren't stuck with one provider. You can actually run different models against the same prompt node to compare outputs side-by-side in the same visual space. 3. **Regeneration:** If a specific response is subpar, you can regenerate just that node without disrupting the rest of your logic tree. ## Technical setup and provider support One thing I appreciate is that this isn't another subscription-based wrapper that eats your margin. It's a "bring your own keys" (BYOK) model, which is essential for power users who want to control their own costs and latency. The tool currently supports four major providers: For anyone doing heavy-duty prompt engineering or building complex LLM agents, the ability to map out the decision tree visually is a massive advantage. It turns a conversation into a structured map of logic. If you are tired of the "scroll and pray" method of interacting with models, exploring a spatial UI might be the logical next step for your development process. [Goodfire just released a tool to peek inside the AI black box 1h ago](/en/news/7808/) [Is the AI hype cycle finally hitting a wall of actual business 3h ago](/en/news/7800/) [Bill Gates thinks we are flying blind with AI development 12h ago](/en/news/7740/) [Students are ditching ChatGPT for specialized LLMs when it comes 15h ago](/en/news/7728/) [Why the US immigration bottleneck is creating a massive talent 1d ago](/en/news/7645/) [The massive AI hype might be hitting a wall of reality 1d ago](/en/news/7643/) [Next Customer service is officially hitting a massive turning point →](/en/news/7810/) [a library of Claude prompt techniques](https://tanyan888.com/), with plenty of directly applicable cases.