Genesis Docs

Venice AI provides privacy-focused AI inference with support for uncensored models and access to major proprietary models through their anonymized proxy. All inference is private by default — no training on your data, no logging.

Why Venice in Genesis

  • Private inference for open-source models (no logging).
  • Uncensored models when you need them.
  • Anonymized access to proprietary models (Opus/GPT/Gemini) when quality matters.
  • OpenAI-compatible /v1 endpoints.

Privacy modes

Venice offers two privacy levels — understanding this is key to choosing your model:

Mode Description Models
Private Fully private. Prompts/responses are never stored or logged. Ephemeral. Llama, Qwen, DeepSeek, Kimi, MiniMax, Venice Uncensored, etc.
Anonymized Proxied through Venice with metadata stripped. The underlying provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, xAI) sees anonymized requests. Claude, GPT, Gemini, Grok
Anonymized models are **not** fully private. Venice strips metadata before forwarding, but the underlying provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, xAI) still processes the request. Choose **Private** models when full privacy is required.

Features

  • Privacy-focused: Choose between "private" (fully private) and "anonymized" (proxied) modes
  • Uncensored models: Access to models without content restrictions
  • Major model access: Use Claude, GPT, Gemini, and Grok via Venice's anonymized proxy
  • OpenAI-compatible API: Standard /v1 endpoints for easy integration
  • Streaming: Supported on all models
  • Function calling: Supported on select models (check model capabilities)
  • Vision: Supported on models with vision capability
  • No hard rate limits: Fair-use throttling may apply for extreme usage

Getting started

Get your API key

1. Sign up at [venice.ai](https://venice.ai)
2. Go to **Settings > API Keys > Create new key**
3. Copy your API key (format: `vapi_xxxxxxxxxxxx`)

Configure Genesis

Choose your preferred setup method:

Interactive (recommended)

    ```bash
    genesis onboard --auth-choice venice-api-key
    ```

    This will:
    1. Prompt for your API key (or use existing `VENICE_API_KEY`)
    2. Show all available Venice models
    3. Let you pick your default model
    4. Configure the provider automatically

Environment variable

    ```bash
    export VENICE_API_KEY="vapi_xxxxxxxxxxxx"
    ```

Non-interactive

    ```bash
    genesis onboard --non-interactive \
      --auth-choice venice-api-key \
      --venice-api-key "vapi_xxxxxxxxxxxx"
    ```

Verify setup

```bash
genesis agent --model venice/kimi-k2-5 --message "Hello, are you working?"
```

Model selection

After setup, Genesis shows all available Venice models. Pick based on your needs:

  • Default model: venice/kimi-k2-5 for strong private reasoning plus vision.
  • High-capability option: venice/claude-opus-4-6 for the strongest anonymized Venice path.
  • Privacy: Choose "private" models for fully private inference.
  • Capability: Choose "anonymized" models to access Claude, GPT, Gemini via Venice's proxy.

Change your default model anytime:

genesis models set venice/kimi-k2-5
genesis models set venice/claude-opus-4-6

List all available models:

genesis models list | grep venice

You can also run genesis configure, select Model/auth, and choose Venice AI.

Use the table below to pick the right model for your use case.
Use Case Recommended Model Why
General chat (default) kimi-k2-5 Strong private reasoning plus vision
Best overall quality claude-opus-4-6 Strongest anonymized Venice option
Privacy + coding qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct Private coding model with large context
Private vision kimi-k2-5 Vision support without leaving private mode
Fast + cheap qwen3-4b Lightweight reasoning model
Complex private tasks deepseek-v3.2 Strong reasoning, but no Venice tool support
Uncensored venice-uncensored No content restrictions

Built-in catalog (41 total)

Private models (26) — fully private, no logging

| Model ID                               | Name                                | Context | Features                   |
| -------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------- | ------- | -------------------------- |
| `kimi-k2-5`                            | Kimi K2.5                           | 256k    | Default, reasoning, vision |
| `kimi-k2-thinking`                     | Kimi K2 Thinking                    | 256k    | Reasoning                  |
| `llama-3.3-70b`                        | Llama 3.3 70B                       | 128k    | General                    |
| `llama-3.2-3b`                         | Llama 3.2 3B                        | 128k    | General                    |
| `hermes-3-llama-3.1-405b`              | Hermes 3 Llama 3.1 405B            | 128k    | General, tools disabled    |
| `qwen3-235b-a22b-thinking-2507`        | Qwen3 235B Thinking                | 128k    | Reasoning                  |
| `qwen3-235b-a22b-instruct-2507`        | Qwen3 235B Instruct                | 128k    | General                    |
| `qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct`       | Qwen3 Coder 480B                   | 256k    | Coding                     |
| `qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct-turbo` | Qwen3 Coder 480B Turbo             | 256k    | Coding                     |
| `qwen3-5-35b-a3b`                      | Qwen3.5 35B A3B                    | 256k    | Reasoning, vision          |
| `qwen3-next-80b`                       | Qwen3 Next 80B                     | 256k    | General                    |
| `qwen3-vl-235b-a22b`                   | Qwen3 VL 235B (Vision)             | 256k    | Vision                     |
| `qwen3-4b`                             | Venice Small (Qwen3 4B)            | 32k     | Fast, reasoning            |
| `deepseek-v3.2`                        | DeepSeek V3.2                      | 160k    | Reasoning, tools disabled  |
| `venice-uncensored`                    | Venice Uncensored (Dolphin-Mistral) | 32k     | Uncensored, tools disabled |
| `mistral-31-24b`                       | Venice Medium (Mistral)            | 128k    | Vision                     |
| `google-gemma-3-27b-it`                | Google Gemma 3 27B Instruct        | 198k    | Vision                     |
| `openai-gpt-oss-120b`                  | OpenAI GPT OSS 120B               | 128k    | General                    |
| `nvidia-nemotron-3-nano-30b-a3b`       | NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Nano 30B         | 128k    | General                    |
| `olafangensan-glm-4.7-flash-heretic`   | GLM 4.7 Flash Heretic              | 128k    | Reasoning                  |
| `zai-org-glm-4.6`                      | GLM 4.6                            | 198k    | General                    |
| `zai-org-glm-4.7`                      | GLM 4.7                            | 198k    | Reasoning                  |
| `zai-org-glm-4.7-flash`                | GLM 4.7 Flash                      | 128k    | Reasoning                  |
| `zai-org-glm-5`                        | GLM 5                              | 198k    | Reasoning                  |
| `minimax-m21`                          | MiniMax M2.1                       | 198k    | Reasoning                  |
| `minimax-m25`                          | MiniMax M2.5                       | 198k    | Reasoning                  |

Anonymized models (15) — via Venice proxy

| Model ID                        | Name                           | Context | Features                  |
| ------------------------------- | ------------------------------ | ------- | ------------------------- |
| `claude-opus-4-6`               | Claude Opus 4.6 (via Venice)   | 1M      | Reasoning, vision         |
| `claude-opus-4-5`               | Claude Opus 4.5 (via Venice)   | 198k    | Reasoning, vision         |
| `claude-sonnet-4-6`             | Claude Sonnet 4.6 (via Venice) | 1M      | Reasoning, vision         |
| `claude-sonnet-4-5`             | Claude Sonnet 4.5 (via Venice) | 198k    | Reasoning, vision         |
| `openai-gpt-54`                 | GPT-5.4 (via Venice)           | 1M      | Reasoning, vision         |
| `openai-gpt-53-codex`           | GPT-5.3 Codex (via Venice)     | 400k    | Reasoning, vision, coding |
| `openai-gpt-52`                 | GPT-5.2 (via Venice)           | 256k    | Reasoning                 |
| `openai-gpt-52-codex`           | GPT-5.2 Codex (via Venice)     | 256k    | Reasoning, vision, coding |
| `openai-gpt-4o-2024-11-20`      | GPT-4o (via Venice)            | 128k    | Vision                    |
| `openai-gpt-4o-mini-2024-07-18` | GPT-4o Mini (via Venice)       | 128k    | Vision                    |
| `gemini-3-1-pro-preview`        | Gemini 3.1 Pro (via Venice)    | 1M      | Reasoning, vision         |
| `gemini-3-pro-preview`          | Gemini 3 Pro (via Venice)      | 198k    | Reasoning, vision         |
| `gemini-3-flash-preview`        | Gemini 3 Flash (via Venice)    | 256k    | Reasoning, vision         |
| `grok-41-fast`                  | Grok 4.1 Fast (via Venice)     | 1M      | Reasoning, vision         |
| `grok-code-fast-1`              | Grok Code Fast 1 (via Venice)  | 256k    | Reasoning, coding         |

Model discovery

Genesis automatically discovers models from the Venice API when VENICE_API_KEY is set. If the API is unreachable, it falls back to a static catalog.

The /models endpoint is public (no auth needed for listing), but inference requires a valid API key.

Streaming and tool support

Feature Support
Streaming All models
Function calling Most models (check supportsFunctionCalling in API)
Vision/Images Models marked with "Vision" feature
JSON mode Supported via response_format

Pricing

Venice uses a credit-based system. Check venice.ai/pricing for current rates:

  • Private models: Generally lower cost
  • Anonymized models: Similar to direct API pricing + small Venice fee

Venice (anonymized) vs direct API

Aspect Venice (Anonymized) Direct API
Privacy Metadata stripped, anonymized Your account linked
Latency +10-50ms (proxy) Direct
Features Most features supported Full features
Billing Venice credits Provider billing

Usage examples

# Use the default private model
genesis agent --model venice/kimi-k2-5 --message "Quick health check"

# Use Claude Opus via Venice (anonymized)
genesis agent --model venice/claude-opus-4-6 --message "Summarize this task"

# Use uncensored model
genesis agent --model venice/venice-uncensored --message "Draft options"

# Use vision model with image
genesis agent --model venice/qwen3-vl-235b-a22b --message "Review attached image"

# Use coding model
genesis agent --model venice/qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct --message "Refactor this function"

Troubleshooting

API key not recognized

```bash
echo $VENICE_API_KEY
genesis models list | grep venice
```

Ensure the key starts with `vapi_`.

Model not available

The Venice model catalog updates dynamically. Run `genesis models list` to see currently available models. Some models may be temporarily offline.

Connection issues

Venice API is at `https://api.venice.ai/api/v1`. Ensure your network allows HTTPS connections.
More help: [Troubleshooting](/help/troubleshooting) and [FAQ](/help/faq).

Advanced configuration

Config file example

```json5
{
  env: { VENICE_API_KEY: "vapi_..." },
  agents: { defaults: { model: { primary: "venice/kimi-k2-5" } } },
  models: {
    mode: "merge",
    providers: {
      venice: {
        baseUrl: "https://api.venice.ai/api/v1",
        apiKey: "${VENICE_API_KEY}",
        api: "openai-completions",
        models: [
          {
            id: "kimi-k2-5",
            name: "Kimi K2.5",
            reasoning: true,
            input: ["text", "image"],
            cost: { input: 0, output: 0, cacheRead: 0, cacheWrite: 0 },
            contextWindow: 256000,
            maxTokens: 65536,
          },
        ],
      },
    },
  },
}
```

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