// devtools · vercel/ai

ai

Vercel's AI SDK: the TypeScript toolkit for building AI apps and agents with any model provider

★ 27.2k stars⑂ 5.3k forksNOASSERTIONupdated 2026-10
▦ visual — this project's README ships no embeddable screenshot,
so here's a placeholder. The guide below is complete regardless.
// project facts

Project facts

ai is an open-source dev tools project by vercel (vercel/ai on GitHub). It has 27,180 GitHub stars and 5,288 forks, is released under the NOASSERTION license, and was last updated on GitHub on 8 October 2026.

Repository
vercel/ai
GitHub stars
27,180
Forks
5,288
License
NOASSERTION
Last updated on GitHub
8 October 2026
Category
Dev Tools
Listing
Full install guide
Official site
Official site
// how it works

How it works

  1. Clarify your goal

    Decide what you want to achieve with ai and check the README on GitHub for requirements before installing.

  2. Get the code

    Clone the repository from GitHub (or take the packaged install route in step 3 if the README offers one).

  3. Install and configure

    Follow the project's documented install commands — the Run section below lists the exact ones — and add any required API keys or models.

  4. Run your first task

    Work through the README's quickstart example end to end, then adapt it to your own project or data.

// features

Why people love it

Unified provider API

Switch models and providers without rewriting your generation code.

Text and structured generation

Generate text and type-safe structured objects from the same toolkit.

Agent building blocks

Tool calling and agent patterns are first-class parts of the SDK.

UI integrations

Streaming chat and generative-UI hooks/packages for React, and support for Svelte, Vue and Angular.

Templates to start from

Official templates help scaffold common AI app shapes quickly.

Coding-agent skill

The project even ships a skill (npx skills add vercel/ai) that teaches coding agents the SDK.

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// run it

Run it yourself

  1. Clone the repository

    Get the AI SDK monorepo source and examples.

    git clone https://github.com/vercel/ai.git
    cd ai
  2. Install the SDK in your app

    Add the core package and the provider package for your model.

    npm install ai
    npm install @ai-sdk/openai
  3. Generate your first text

    Use generateText (or streamText) with your provider key as shown in the README usage section.

    # import { generateText } from 'ai';
    # import { openai } from '@ai-sdk/openai';  // see README Usage for the full snippet
// use cases

What you can build

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// faq

Questions, answered

Who maintains ai?

ai is maintained by the vercel organization/account on GitHub, together with open-source contributors, in the public repository vercel/ai.

Is ai free to use?

Yes — the code is open source under the NOASSERTION license. Check the repository's LICENSE file for the exact terms before commercial use.

Does ai need a paid API key?

The SDK is free; model calls use your own provider API keys (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and others), billed by that provider.

How does ai compare to LangChain.js?

LangChain.js is a broad framework with chains and retrievers; the AI SDK is a leaner, provider-unified toolkit especially strong on streaming UI in the Vercel/React ecosystem.

How do I get started with ai?

Clone the repository from GitHub, follow the install commands in the Run section (taken from the project's README), and complete the documented quickstart example before adapting it to your own use case.

// keep exploring

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Get ai

Free and open — grab the source, star the repo, and start creating.