> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tera.gw/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> Make your first inference request in under a minute.

## 1. Get an API key

Email [hello@tera.gw](mailto:hello@tera.gw?subject=Tera%20API%20access) to request a key. Keys are formatted as `sk-tera-...`.

## 2. Send your first request

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash curl theme={null}
  curl https://api.tera.gw/v1/chat/completions \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer $TERA_API_KEY" \
    -d '{
      "model": "Qwen/Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct",
      "messages": [
        {"role": "user", "content": "Say hello in one short sentence."}
      ],
      "max_tokens": 64
    }'
  ```

  ```python python theme={null}
  from openai import OpenAI

  client = OpenAI(
      base_url="https://api.tera.gw/v1",
      api_key="sk-tera-...",
  )

  resp = client.chat.completions.create(
      model="Qwen/Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct",
      messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Say hello in one short sentence."}],
      max_tokens=64,
  )
  print(resp.choices[0].message.content)
  ```

  ```javascript node theme={null}
  import OpenAI from "openai";

  const client = new OpenAI({
    baseURL: "https://api.tera.gw/v1",
    apiKey: process.env.TERA_API_KEY,
  });

  const resp = await client.chat.completions.create({
    model: "Qwen/Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct",
    messages: [{ role: "user", content: "Say hello in one short sentence." }],
    max_tokens: 64,
  });

  console.log(resp.choices[0].message.content);
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## 3. Stream the response

Add `"stream": true` to get token-by-token output over Server-Sent Events. See [Streaming](/concepts/streaming) for the full event format.

```bash theme={null}
curl https://api.tera.gw/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TERA_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "Qwen/Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct",
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Count to five."}],
    "stream": true
  }'
```

## What next?

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Browse models" icon="microchip" href="/models/overview">
    Pick the right model for your workload.
  </Card>

  <Card title="OpenAI compatibility" icon="arrow-right-arrow-left" href="/concepts/openai-compat">
    Migrating from OpenAI? Read this first.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Reasoning models" icon="brain" href="/concepts/reasoning">
    How to use chain-of-thought reasoning with Qwen3.5.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Tool calling" icon="wrench" href="/concepts/tool-calling">
    Function calling with OpenAI-compatible schemas.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>