What WaveSpeed brings to developers

The concept of a unified LLM API isn't entirely new in 2026 — services like OpenRouter or Together AI have been offering aggregated access to language models for several years. WaveSpeed, however, tries to go a step further by covering not only text models, but connecting them with the entire generative AI ecosystem.

The platform uses a standard chat-completions interface compatible with the OpenAI SDK. This means developers don't have to rewrite code when they want to switch, for example, from GPT-5.5 to Claude Opus 4.7 — just change one parameter in the API call. Support includes streaming, JSON mode, tool use (function calling), and working with visual inputs. WaveSpeed declares that its infrastructure is designed to minimize so-called "cold starts" and deliver low latency on the first token.

260+ models from 30 providers

In WaveSpeed's catalog, you'll find the currently most powerful models across all major providers. Represented are:

• OpenAI: GPT-5.5, GPT-5.4, GPT-5.4 Pro, GPT-5.4 Mini, GPT-5.4 Nano, GPT-5.3 Chat
• Anthropic: Claude Opus 4.7, Claude Opus 4.6, Claude Sonnet 4.6, Claude Haiku 4.5
• Google: Gemini 3.1 Pro, Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, Gemini 2.5 Pro, Gemini 2.5 Flash
• xAI: Grok 4
• DeepSeek: DeepSeek V4, DeepSeek V4 Pro, DeepSeek V3.2
• Meta: Llama 4
• Alibaba: Qwen 3, Qwen 3 Max
• Mistral, Moonshot (Kimi K2.5), MiniMax, Zhipu (GLM-5.1) and dozens of others

Each model in the catalog has clearly listed parameters: price per input and output tokens, context window length, and supported features (vision, audio input, tool use). Developers can thus compare models and choose according to the specific needs of the project.

How much does it cost?

WaveSpeed charges transparently per token — separately for input and output tokens. To give you an idea:

• Claude Opus 4.7: $0.015 / 1,000 input tokens, $0.075 / 1,000 output
• GPT-5.4: $0.010 / 1,000 input, $0.030 / 1,000 output
• Gemini 2.5 Pro: $0.00125 / 1,000 input, $0.005 / 1,000 output
• DeepSeek V4: $0.0007 / 1,000 input, $0.0028 / 1,000 output

There is no mandatory subscription or minimum spend — you only pay for what you actually consume. New users also receive $1 in free credit to try out the service without entering a payment card. The platform offers four account tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Ultra) based on the amount of credit topped up, with higher tiers unlocking higher rate limits and more concurrent tasks.

More than just text — a multimodal ecosystem

While most competing aggregators (including the popular OpenRouter, which offers over 300 text models) remain exclusively focused on language models, WaveSpeed connects LLMs with a much broader portfolio. The same API key that unlocks 260+ text models also grants access to over 1,000 models for other modalities:

• Image generation: Flux, Seedream 4.5, Ideogram, Recraft, Z Image Turbo
• Video generation: Seedance 2.0, Kling 3.0, Wan 2.7, Hunyuan, Vidu, Veo 3.1
• Audio and speech generation: text-to-speech models, InfiniteTalk for lipsync
• 3D creation and avatars: models for 3D modeling and digital avatars

In practice, this means that a marketing team can have Claude write ad copy, generate visuals using Flux via the same API, and finally create a short video from it — without leaving a single platform or managing multiple billing accounts. As Zeyi Cheng, CEO of WaveSpeed, stated: "AI products are no longer built around a single model or a single modality. One workflow may require reasoning, image generation, video creation, and speech output. WaveSpeed gives developers a single integration layer for this entire model stack."

Comparison with the competition

The market for unified AI model APIs is fairly developed in 2026. OpenRouter remains the best-known choice with over 300 language models and an established community, but lacks multimodal reach. Together AI targets enterprise customers more with its own infrastructure and serverless GPUs. Replicate offers a wide range of models including image ones, but with a different pricing model (pay per run, not per token).

WaveSpeed positions itself as a "one-stop shop" for the entire generative AI spectrum — from text through image to video and 3D. The competitive advantage is precisely the combination of language and generative models under one roof, with unified billing and OpenAI SDK compatibility.

For developers who currently use OpenRouter for text and simultaneously Replicate or separate APIs for images and video, WaveSpeed represents a potential simplification of infrastructure. Instead of three different platforms, three API keys, and three billing cycles, one is enough.

What this means for Czech developers and companies

For Czech startups, agencies, and development teams, WaveSpeed is an interesting alternative. The platform is available globally without geographic restrictions — registration is open to anyone and payments can be made with standard cards (Visa, Mastercard) or via PayPal. Billing is in USD, so you need to account for conversion and potential exchange rate fees.

Czech AI startups experimenting with different models or building applications combining text and visual AI can save considerable integration time thanks to the unified API. Instead of managing separate accounts with OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and other providers, one API key is enough. This is especially appreciated by smaller teams, where every saved development hour counts.

It's worth noting that the Czech language is not separately listed as supported by most LLMs, but the major models (GPT-5.5, Claude Opus 4.7, Gemini 3) handle Czech without problems. If you plan to use LLMs for content generation in Czech, we recommend testing output quality across several models — and WaveSpeed's unified API makes such comparison significantly easier.

How to get started

The WaveSpeed LLM API is available at wavespeed.ai/llm. Developers can create an API key, try out models in the free playground, and study the complete documentation at wavespeed.ai/docs. The API is fully compatible with the OpenAI SDK — migrating existing code is a matter of changing the base URL and API key.

For support, there is a Discord community, a public status page, and for enterprise customers a dedicated account manager with SLA guarantees. Source code and CLI tools can be found on GitHub.