Quickstart

Get your first response in 3 lines of code. VerticalAPI is 100% OpenAI SDK compatible.

Base URL: https://api.verticalapi.com/v1

Python (OpenAI SDK)

quickstart.pypython

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://api.verticalapi.com/v1",
    api_key="vapi_your_key_here",
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="geopolitical-risk",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Analyze Iran-Israel escalation dynamics"}],
)

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

cURL

terminalbash

curl -X POST https://api.verticalapi.com/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer vapi_your_key_here" \
  -d '{
    "model": "geopolitical-risk",
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Risk level for Strait of Hormuz?"}],
    "stream": false
  }'

Streaming

streaming.pypython

stream = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="geopolitical-risk",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Analyze Iran-Israel escalation"}],
    stream=True,
)

for chunk in stream:
    if chunk.choices[0].delta.content:
        print(chunk.choices[0].delta.content, end="")

Authentication

All API requests require a vapi_ API key passed via the Authorization header.

headerhttp

Authorization: Bearer vapi_your_key_here

API keys are tied to a tier (Free, Pro, Enterprise) which determines rate limits and available backend models. Keys are hashed server-side — we never store the raw key.

To get an API key, contact us.

Chat Completions

POST /v1/chat/completions

Create a chat completion using a vertical model. Follows the exact OpenAI Chat Completions API schema.

Request body

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
model	string	Yes	Vertical slug (e.g. `"geopolitical-risk"`)
messages	array	Yes	Array of message objects with `role` and `content`
stream	boolean	No	Enable SSE streaming (default: false)
temperature	float	No	Sampling temperature (0.0 - 1.0)
max_tokens	integer	No	Maximum output tokens (default: 4096, max: 8192)
tools	array	No	Additional tool definitions (merged with vertical's built-in tools)
tool_choice	string	No	Tool selection mode

Response

response.jsonjson

{
  "id": "chatcmpl-vapi-abc123",
  "object": "chat.completion",
  "created": 1234567890,
  "model": "geopolitical-risk",
  "choices": [{
    "index": 0,
    "message": {
      "role": "assistant",
      "content": "Based on current intelligence signals..."
    },
    "finish_reason": "stop"
  }],
  "usage": {
    "prompt_tokens": 1847,
    "completion_tokens": 256,
    "total_tokens": 2103
  }
}

Note: The model field in the response always returns the vertical slug, not the backend model. This is by design — the backend model is an implementation detail.

Streaming

Set "stream": true to receive Server-Sent Events (SSE) in OpenAI format:

SSE streamtext

data: {"id":"chatcmpl-vapi-abc123","choices":[{"delta":{"role":"assistant"},"finish_reason":null}]}

data: {"id":"chatcmpl-vapi-abc123","choices":[{"delta":{"content":"Based on"},"finish_reason":null}]}

data: {"id":"chatcmpl-vapi-abc123","choices":[{"delta":{"content":" current"},"finish_reason":null}]}

data: {"id":"chatcmpl-vapi-abc123","choices":[{"delta":{},"finish_reason":"stop"}]}

data: [DONE]

List Models

GET /v1/models

Returns available verticals in OpenAI models list format.

responsejson

{
  "object": "list",
  "data": [
    {
      "id": "geopolitical-risk",
      "object": "model",
      "owned_by": "verticalapi",
      "description": "AI model specialized in geopolitical risk analysis"
    }
  ]
}

Health Check

GET /health

responsejson

{"status": "ok", "version": "0.1.0"}

Errors

VerticalAPI returns OpenAI-compatible error responses:

Status	Type	Description
401	authentication_error	Missing or invalid API key
404	not_found_error	Unknown vertical/model slug
429	rate_limit_error	Rate limit exceeded (check `Retry-After` header)
400	invalid_request_error	Malformed request body
502	api_error	Backend provider error

error responsejson

{
  "error": {
    "message": "Model 'xxx' not found. Available: geopolitical-risk",
    "type": "not_found_error",
    "code": "model_not_found"
  }
}

Verticals

Each vertical is a pre-configured AI model with a built-in system prompt, tool definitions, and intelligent model routing.

geopolitical-risk

Senior geopolitical risk analyst with expertise in conflict dynamics, economic warfare, and strategic intelligence.

System prompt: 2000-token expert analyst persona
Tools: get_crisis_index, search_conflict_events, get_sanctions_status, get_country_risk_profile, analyze_escalation_ladder, get_commodity_impact
Routing: Sonnet default, Opus for complex analysis ("scenario analysis", "wargame", "deep analysis"), Haiku for free tier and short queries

Coming soon: Financial Analyst, Legal Research, Technical Writer, Customer Intelligence.

SDK Support

VerticalAPI is 100% OpenAI SDK compatible. Any library that supports the OpenAI Chat Completions API works — just change base_url and api_key.

Python

python

from openai import OpenAI
client = OpenAI(base_url="https://api.verticalapi.com/v1", api_key="vapi_...")

JavaScript / TypeScript

javascript

import OpenAI from 'openai';
const client = new OpenAI({
  baseURL: 'https://api.verticalapi.com/v1',
  apiKey: 'vapi_...',
});

Go

client := openai.NewClient(
    option.WithBaseURL("https://api.verticalapi.com/v1"),
    option.WithAPIKey("vapi_..."),
)

cURL

bash

curl https://api.verticalapi.com/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer vapi_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model":"geopolitical-risk","messages":[...]}'

Pricing & Rate Limits

Tier	Price	Req/min	Req/day	Req/month	Backend
Free	$0	10	100	3,000	Haiku
Pro	$49/mo	60	10,000	300,000	Sonnet
Enterprise	Custom	300	100,000	3,000,000	Opus

Rate limit headers are included in every response:

X-RateLimit-Limit — requests per minute for your tier
X-RateLimit-Remaining — remaining requests in current window
X-RateLimit-Reset — seconds until window resets
Retry-After — seconds to wait (only on 429 responses)

Changelog

v0.1.0 — April 2026

Initial release
OpenAI-compatible proxy with streaming support
First vertical: Geopolitical Risk Analyst
API key auth with tier-based rate limiting
Intelligent model routing (Haiku / Sonnet / Opus)