What is an API Relay?

An API relay (also called an API gateway or reverse proxy) is a server that sits between your application and upstream AI service providers. It receives API requests from your application, forwards them to the appropriate provider, and returns the response.

How It Works

Your App  →  3xCoder Relay  →  OpenAI / Anthropic / Google
              (api.3xcoder.com)

When you send a request to https://api.3xcoder.com/v1/chat/completions, 3xCoder:

1. Authenticates your request using your API key
2. Routes the request to the correct upstream provider based on the model you specified
3. Forwards the response back to your application

The entire process is transparent — your application sees a standard OpenAI-compatible API response.

Why Use an API Relay?

Unified Interface

Instead of integrating with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google separately (each with their own SDKs, authentication, and API formats), you use one endpoint and one API key format for everything.

Multi-Model Flexibility

Switch between GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet, Gemini Pro, or Codex by changing a single model parameter. No code changes, no SDK swaps.

Centralized Management

• API Key Management — Create, rotate, and revoke keys from one dashboard
• Usage Tracking — Monitor token consumption across all models in one place
• Quota Controls — Set per-key rate limits and token budgets
• Team Management — Issue separate keys for different users or projects

OpenAI SDK Compatibility

3xCoder is fully compatible with the OpenAI API format. This means:

• The official OpenAI Python/Node.js SDKs work by simply changing the base URL
• Tools like Claude Code, CodeX CLI, and Gemini CLI can be configured to use 3xCoder
• Third-party apps like CherryStudio, Alma, and OpenClaw work out of the box

Architecture

3xCoder uses a high-availability architecture:

• Load Balancing — Requests are distributed across multiple upstream connections
• Automatic Failover — If one upstream route fails, requests are automatically retried through alternative paths
• Global Routing — Optimized routing to minimize latency
• Stream Support — Full support for Server-Sent Events (SSE) streaming

Security

• All traffic is encrypted via HTTPS/TLS
• Your upstream provider API keys are never exposed to end users
• 3xCoder does not store or log the content of your API requests or responses
• API keys can be revoked instantly from the dashboard

Supported Providers

Provider	Models	API Format
OpenAI	GPT-4o, GPT-4, GPT-3.5, Codex	Native
Anthropic	Claude Sonnet, Claude Haiku, Claude Opus	OpenAI-compatible
Google	Gemini Pro, Gemini Flash	OpenAI-compatible

All models are accessed through the same OpenAI-compatible endpoint at https://api.3xcoder.com/v1.