xAI provider

You can proxy requests to xAI AI models through AI Gateway using the AI Proxy and AI Proxy Advanced plugins. This reference documents all supported AI capabilities, configuration requirements, and provider-specific details needed for proper integration.

AI Gateway automatically routes requests to the appropriate xAI API endpoints. The following table shows the upstream paths used for each capability.

The following tables show the AI capabilities supported by xAI provider when used with the AI Proxy or the AI Proxy Advanced plugin.

Set the plugin’s route_type based on the capability you want to use. See the tables below for supported route types.

Text generation

Support for xAI basic text generation capabilities including chat, completions, and embeddings:

Advanced text generation

Support for xAI function calling to allow xAI models to use external tools and APIs:

Processing

Support for xAI file operations, batch operations, assistants, and response handling:

Image

Support for xAI image generation and editing capabilities:

For requests with large payloads, consider increasing config.max_request_body_size to three times the raw binary size.

Supported image sizes and formats vary by model. Refer to your provider’s documentation for allowed dimensions and requirements.

The base URL is https://api.x.ai:443/{route_type_path}, where {route_type_path} is determined by the capability.

AI Gateway uses this URL automatically. You only need to configure a URL if you’re using a self-hosted or xAI-compatible endpoint, in which case set the upstream_url plugin option.

To use xAI with AI Gateway, configure the AI Proxy or AI Proxy Advanced.

Here’s a minimal configuration for chat completions:

_format_version: "3.0"
plugins:
  - name: ai-proxy
    config:
      route_type: llm/v1/chat
      auth:
        header_name: Authorization
        header_value: Bearer ${{ env "DECK_XAI_API_KEY" }}
      model:
        provider: xai
        name: grok-4
        options:
          max_tokens: 512
          temperature: 1.0

curl -i -X POST http://localhost:8001/plugins/ \
    --header "Accept: application/json" \
    --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
    --data '
    {
      "name": "ai-proxy",
      "config": {
        "route_type": "llm/v1/chat",
        "auth": {
          "header_name": "Authorization",
          "header_value": "Bearer '$XAI_API_KEY'"
        },
        "model": {
          "provider": "xai",
          "name": "grok-4",
          "options": {
            "max_tokens": 512,
            "temperature": 1.0
          }
        }
      }
    }
    '

curl -X POST https://{region}.api.konghq.com/v2/control-planes/{controlPlaneId}/core-entities/plugins/ \
    --header "accept: application/json" \
    --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
    --header "Authorization: Bearer $KONNECT_TOKEN" \
    --data '
    {
      "name": "ai-proxy",
      "config": {
        "route_type": "llm/v1/chat",
        "auth": {
          "header_name": "Authorization",
          "header_value": "Bearer '$XAI_API_KEY'"
        },
        "model": {
          "provider": "xai",
          "name": "grok-4",
          "options": {
            "max_tokens": 512,
            "temperature": 1.0
          }
        }
      }
    }
    '

echo "
apiVersion: configuration.konghq.com/v1
kind: KongClusterPlugin
metadata:
  name: ai-proxy
  namespace: kong
  annotations:
    kubernetes.io/ingress.class: kong
  labels:
    global: 'true'
config:
  route_type: llm/v1/chat
  auth:
    header_name: Authorization
    header_value: Bearer $XAI_API_KEY
  model:
    provider: xai
    name: grok-4
    options:
      max_tokens: 512
      temperature: 1.0
plugin: ai-proxy
" | kubectl apply -f -

resource "konnect_gateway_plugin_ai_proxy" "my_ai_proxy" {
  enabled = true

  config = {
    route_type = "llm/v1/chat"

    auth = {
      header_name = "Authorization"
      header_value = "Bearer var.xai_api_key"
    }

    model = {
      provider = "xai"
      name = "grok-4"

      options = {
        max_tokens = 512
        temperature = 1.0
      }
    }
  }

  control_plane_id = konnect_gateway_control_plane.my_konnect_cp.id
}

variable "xai_api_key" {
  type = string
}

For more configuration options and examples, see:

• AI Proxy examples
• AI Proxy Advanced examples

• Set up AI Proxy for image generation with Grok View →