The Vercel AI Gateway provides a unified API to access hundreds of models through a single endpoint.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Provider | vercel-ai-gateway |
| Auth | AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY |
| API | Anthropic Messages compatible |
| Model catalog | Auto-discovered via /v1/models |
Tip
OpenClaw auto-discovers the Gateway /v1/models catalog, so /models vercel-ai-gateway includes current model refs such as vercel-ai-gateway/openai/gpt-5.5 and vercel-ai-gateway/moonshotai/kimi-k2.6.
Getting started
Set the API key
Run onboarding and choose the AI Gateway auth option:
```bash
openclaw onboard --auth-choice ai-gateway-api-key
```
Set a default model
Add the model to your OpenClaw config:
```json5
{
agents: {
defaults: {
model: { primary: "vercel-ai-gateway/anthropic/claude-opus-4.6" },
},
},
}
```
Verify the model is available
```bash
openclaw models list --provider vercel-ai-gateway
```
Non-interactive example
For scripted or CI setups, pass all values on the command line:
bash
openclaw onboard --non-interactive \
--mode local \
--auth-choice ai-gateway-api-key \
--ai-gateway-api-key "$AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY"Model ID shorthand
OpenClaw accepts Vercel Claude shorthand model refs and normalizes them at runtime:
| Shorthand input | Normalized model ref |
|---|---|
vercel-ai-gateway/claude-opus-4.6 | vercel-ai-gateway/anthropic/claude-opus-4.6 |
vercel-ai-gateway/opus-4.6 | vercel-ai-gateway/anthropic/claude-opus-4-6 |
Tip
You can use either the shorthand or the fully qualified model ref in your configuration. OpenClaw resolves the canonical form automatically.
Advanced configuration
Environment variable for daemon processes
If the OpenClaw Gateway runs as a daemon (launchd/systemd), make sure
`AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY` is available to that process.
Warning
A key exported only in an interactive shell will not be visible to a
launchd/systemd daemon unless that environment is explicitly imported. Set
the key in `~/.openclaw/.env` or via `env.shellEnv` to ensure the gateway
process can read it.
Provider routing
Vercel AI Gateway routes requests to the upstream provider based on the model
ref prefix. For example, `vercel-ai-gateway/anthropic/claude-opus-4.6` routes
through Anthropic, while `vercel-ai-gateway/openai/gpt-5.5` routes through
OpenAI and `vercel-ai-gateway/moonshotai/kimi-k2.6` routes through
MoonshotAI. Your single `AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY` handles authentication for all
upstream providers.
Thinking levels
`/think` options follow trusted upstream model prefixes when OpenClaw knows
the upstream provider contract. `vercel-ai-gateway/anthropic/...` uses the
Claude thinking profile, including adaptive defaults for Claude 4.6 models.
`vercel-ai-gateway/openai/gpt-5.4`, `gpt-5.5`, and Codex-style refs expose
`/think xhigh` just like the direct OpenAI/OpenAI Codex providers. Other
namespaced refs keep the normal reasoning levels unless their catalog
metadata declares more.
Related
- Model selection — Choosing providers, model refs, and failover behavior.
- Troubleshooting — General troubleshooting and FAQ.