How do you want to chat?
There are two ways to use Power BI Agent, each with its own characteristics. Choose what fits your situation best.
Power BI Agent can be used in two ways. They can also be used alongside each other.
Comparison
| Chat via portal | Chat via Claude | |
|---|---|---|
| How | Via the Chat tab in the portal | Via Claude Desktop or Claude.ai |
| Setup | Enter a Claude API key | Set up the Claude Connector |
| Token usage | From the organization's Claude API key | From the Claude subscription |
| Pseudonymization | Yes — fields set to "pseudonymize" are sent to Claude as a pseudonym | No — fields set to "pseudonymize" are anonymized instead |
| ZDR (Zero Data Retention) | Possible — request from Anthropic for your API account | Not applicable |
| Requires | Claude API key (organization level) | Claude subscription (personal or organization) |
Mode 1: Chat via portal
The owner configures a Claude API key at the organization level. All users then chat via the Chat tab in the portal.
Advantages:
- Full support for pseudonymization — sensitive values are consistently replaced with a pseudonym, so Claude analyzes patterns without seeing the real values.
- ZDR (Zero Data Retention) possible — request this via platform.claude.com/settings/privacy. Data is then not retained.
- Users do not need their own Claude subscription.
Set up: Go to Configure AI model.
Mode 2: Chat via Claude Desktop or Claude.ai
Each user installs the Claude Connector. Power BI Agent is then available as a tool in Claude Desktop or Claude.ai.
Advantages:
- Works within the familiar Claude environment.
- Token costs are split per user (each on their own subscription).
Important: Fields set to pseudonymize in Masking are anonymized instead of pseudonymized in this mode. Analysis based on consistent pseudonyms across records is therefore not available. See Masking for the difference.
Set up: Go to Connect Claude.
Which mode should you choose?
- Pseudonymization matters for your analyses? Choose portal chat.
- Users already work in Claude daily? Add the Claude Connector alongside or instead of portal chat.
- Spread costs per user? The Claude Connector lets users consume their own Claude subscription.
- Central control over token usage? Portal chat with one API key.
You can set up both modes simultaneously — they are not mutually exclusive.
Next step
Go to Chat via portal for the steps to get started with the portal chat mode.