Point an OpenAI-compatible SDK at a ChatGPT API relay

AI ROUTER — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 10:43:18 +0000

When a project already uses the OpenAI SDK shape, the lowest-friction way to test a relay service is to change two things only:

the API base URL
the API key

AI ROUTER provides an OpenAI-compatible ChatGPT API relay endpoint at:

https://api.ai-router.dev/v1

That means a small prototype, coding-agent workflow, internal tool, or automation script can keep the same request pattern while using a relay account that exposes API key management, usage tracking, quota, balance, and subscription status.

cURL smoke test

curl https://api.ai-router.dev/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $AI_ROUTER_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "gpt-5.4-mini",
    "messages": [
      { "role": "user", "content": "Reply with a short API smoke test." }
    ]
  }'

Python

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ["AI_ROUTER_API_KEY"],
    base_url="https://api.ai-router.dev/v1",
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="gpt-5.4-mini",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Write one test sentence."}],
)

print(response.choices[0].message.content)

Node.js

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI({
  apiKey: process.env.AI_ROUTER_API_KEY,
  baseURL: "https://api.ai-router.dev/v1",
});

const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
  model: "gpt-5.4-mini",
  messages: [{ role: "user", content: "Write one test sentence." }],
});

console.log(response.choices[0].message.content);

What to check before scaling

Confirm the model name is available in your account.
Start with a small daily or weekly quota plan.
Watch API key usage, balance, quota, and subscription status from the dashboard.
Keep retry and timeout handling in your application code.
Avoid treating any relay as an official OpenAI service unless the provider explicitly says so.

I also published curl, Python, and Node.js examples here:

https://github.com/airouter-dev/chatgpt-api-relay-examples

Product page:

https://ai-router.dev

DEV Community: AI ROUTER

Point an OpenAI-compatible SDK at a ChatGPT API relay

cURL smoke test

Python

Node.js

What to check before scaling