Connect an app

Any tool that uses the OpenAI or Anthropic API can use the exchange. Change two settings: the base URL and the API key. For each request, the exchange picks the best standing offer for the model that you named. It sets a price cap before the first token and charges for the tokens used.

Each guide gives the steps for one tool, a check, and fixes for common errors.

Connect in three steps

1. Issue a key. Create a spend key in your workspace. The format is sk-liquid-<key-id>-<secret>. The console shows it one time only. See API keys.

2. Keep the key out of config files. Each guide reads it from LIQUID_API_KEY.

   export LIQUID_API_KEY=sk-liquid-...
   

3. Set the base URL and pick a guide. If your tool is not listed, follow the OpenAI SDK or Anthropic SDK guide for its format.

A new workspace has a starting balance, shown on the Credits page. If the balance is less than the price cap of a job, the exchange refuses the request.

Start with the Liquid CLI

The Liquid CLI starts the coding agent that you already use with the exchange as its provider. It sets the base URL, key and model for that process only, and writes none of your files.

curl -fsSL https://inference.ai.exchange/cli/install.sh | bash
liquid login
liquid claude

liquid tools lists every tool. liquid connect <tool> prints the setup for a tool that the CLI cannot start, such as an app or an SDK. The guides show the same setup by hand.

Which guide to use

The full list is under All guides.

Test a request

To test a key and a base URL, send one request with curl. The exchange accepts the key as a bearer token, or as x-api-key.

curl

curl https://router.inference.ai.exchange/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $LIQUID_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "liquid.auto",
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "hello"}]
  }'

curl (images)

curl https://router.inference.ai.exchange/v1/images/generations \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $LIQUID_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "liquid.auto",
    "prompt": "A red bicycle leaning on a brick wall",
    "n": 1
  }'

The x-liquid-cap-usd response header is the maximum charge for the job. The actual charge is usually less.

Name a model

Each guide uses liquid.auto. The model field accepts these names:

A client that sets only model can add a suffix:

• :smartest, :fastest or :cheapest picks how the exchange ranks the offers, as in deepseek:fastest.
• +web or :web searches the web for each message (beta), as in deepseek:fastest+web.

A creator name, such as deepseek, is valid with a suffix. See Axis routing. The exchange refuses any other name and never uses a different model. GET /v1/models lists the names you can use. See Market data.

Read the result

Each response has an exchange block with job_id, provider_slug, charge.cap_usd (the maximum cost) and charge.total_usd (the actual cost). Two headers arrive before the first token, so a streaming client has them from the start:

To choose the models, strategy or limits, send an exchange block in the body. A client that can send only headers can send the cap and the first-token limit as x-liquid-* headers, or name a preset. See Purchasing rules.

Reference

Base URL and format

One origin and one key serve both formats. Both formats accept both auth headers.

An OpenAI client adds a path such as /chat/completions. An Anthropic client adds /v1/messages, so a base URL that ends in /v1 gets a 404.

All guides

A Verified label with a release number, such as "Verified 2.1.287", means the setup passed a test run with that release in the last 14 days. Hold the pointer over it to see the date.