What is OpenRouter?
A unified gateway exposing hundreds of models from many providers behind one OpenAI-compatible endpoint.
Tema 05 · 6 modules
OpenRouter
One API to reach hundreds of LLM models from many providers. What OpenRouter is, how to integrate it, routing and fallbacks, costs and going to production.
Basic
View module → Foundations
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OpenRouter · Fonaments
What is OpenRouter?
One integration that reaches hundreds of models.
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OpenRouter · Fonaments
The fragmentation problem
Why wiring up each provider on its own gets expensive.
6 slides ·4 minThe fragmentation problem
Without a router you juggle N SDKs, N keys, N bills and N limits. A router collapses it all into one integration.
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OpenRouter · Fonaments
OpenRouter vs. going direct
The trade-off between flexibility and direct control.
6 slides ·5 minOpenRouter vs. going direct
The router gives flexibility, fallbacks and unified billing; going direct gives lowest latency and provider-specific features. When each makes sense.
Basic
View module → First steps
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OpenRouter · Primers passos
Account and credits
From signup to your first key, with no billing surprises.
6 slides ·4 minAccount and credits
Create the account, understand the prepaid-credit model and generate an API key that never leaves the server.
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OpenRouter · Primers passos
Your first call
From key to your first model response, two ways.
7 slides ·5 minYour first call
Your first chat-completions request via curl and the OpenAI SDK pointed at OpenRouter, with model choice and reading the response.
Intermediate
View module → Models and routing
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OpenRouter · Models i routing
The model catalog
Hundreds of models from many providers, one identifier.
6 slides ·5 minThe model catalog
Hundreds of models from many providers behind one API. How they're named, who serves them and how you list them.
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OpenRouter · Models i routing
Model selection and fallbacks
An ordered list of models in case the first one fails.
6 slides ·4 minModel selection and fallbacks
The "models" array defines an ordered fallback chain. If the first fails, OpenRouter tries the next. Resilience with no extra code.
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OpenRouter · Models i routing
Provider routing and preferences
You decide which backend serves each model.
6 slides ·5 minProvider routing and preferences
The "provider" object controls which backend serves a model — order, fallbacks, required params, price/throughput sorting and data policy.
Intermediate
View module → Costs and limits
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OpenRouter · Costos i límits
Pricing and unified billing
One balance, one bill — and the real price of every token.
5 slides ·4 minPricing and unified billing
You pay per token at each model's rate, from one prepaid balance. One bill for every provider and the real cost of each call.
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OpenRouter · Costos i límits
Limits and cost optimization
What limits exist — and how to spend less without losing quality.
6 slides ·5 minLimits and cost optimization
How balance-tied limits work and the real levers you have to spend less without losing quality.
Advanced
View module → Integration
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OpenRouter · Integració
OpenAI API compatibility
Hundreds of models behind an endpoint you already know.
6 slides ·4 minOpenAI API compatibility
OpenRouter speaks OpenAI's chat-completions schema, so you reuse the official SDK by only changing base_url and api_key.
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OpenRouter · Integració
Streaming and tool calling
The same features as OpenAI, with a per-model caveat.
6 slides ·5 minStreaming and tool calling
SSE streaming and tool calling work like on OpenAI, but support varies per model — check it before relying on it.
Advanced
View module → Production
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OpenRouter · Producció
Fallbacks and resilience
When a model goes down, the app must keep answering.
6 slides ·5 minFallbacks and resilience
In production a model or provider will fail; build a fallback chain, set timeouts and degrade gracefully.
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OpenRouter · Producció
Observability and best practices
Know what you spend, where and why — before the bill tells you.
6 slides ·5 minObservability and best practices
Measure cost and tokens per call, tag traffic, protect keys and set spend limits before the bill catches you.