Smart Router · Chat interfaces

LibreChat with the AI Stupid Level Smart Router

A custom endpoint in librechat.yaml puts the routing modes in LibreChat’s model menu, with fetch: true to list every model the router offers and auto-fastest-quality for conversation titles.

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1,000 routed requests a month free · your own provider keys · no card

Part of Smart Router integrations · About the Smart Router · Help centre

librechat.yamlYAML
endpoints:
  custom:
    - name: "AI Stupid Level"
      apiKey: "${ASL_ROUTER_KEY}"
      baseURL: "https://aistupidlevel.info/v1"
      models:
        default: ["auto-coding", "auto-reasoning", "auto-tooling", "auto-best", "auto-value"]
        fetch: true
      titleConvo: true
      titleModel: "auto-fastest-quality"
      modelDisplayLabel: "AI Stupid Level"

01

What LibreChat gets from the Smart Router

A custom endpoint in librechat.yaml puts the routing modes in LibreChat’s model menu, with fetch: true to list every model the router offers and auto-fastest-quality for conversation titles.

Routing on benchmark results
A routing mode as the model name sends each request to the model placing highest on the relevant board — coding, reasoning or tool use — ranked on the average of its last five benchmark runs, never a single run. Statistically tied leaders are split by your tie-break preference, the cheaper measured cost per task by default. Drift-aware routing moves a model whose drift detector has fired for that skill behind every unflagged model.
Your own provider keys
You pay OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, DeepSeek, Moonshot AI (Kimi) or Z.ai (GLM) directly for tokens. Provider keys are encrypted at rest (AES-256-GCM) and never shown again.
No token markup
The router adds nothing to token prices. Free includes 1,000 routed requests a month, and only successful requests count.
The model that answered, every time
Every response carries X-AISM-Model and X-AISM-Reasoning: which model answered and why, including any fallback. If the chosen model fails before answering, the router tries your own fallback order, then up to 2 automatic fallbacks from different providers.

02

How to set up LibreChat with the Smart Router

Every value below is the one in the router documentation; paste it as shown.

  1. Create a router key

    Go to API keys, click Create key and copy it somewhere safe. The key starts with aism_ and is the one key for every tool you connect.

  2. Add your provider keys

    Under Providers, add keys for OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, DeepSeek, Kimi or GLM. The more providers you add, the better the routing. You pay them directly for tokens; the router adds nothing to token prices, and provider keys are encrypted at rest (AES-256-GCM) and never shown again.

  3. Put the key in LibreChat’s environment

    The sample reads the key as ${ASL_ROUTER_KEY}, so set that variable where LibreChat runs (its .env, or the container’s environment) to your aism_ key.

    .envShell
    ASL_ROUTER_KEY=aism_your_key_here
  4. Add the custom endpoint to librechat.yaml

    One entry under endpoints.custom: the base URL, the key from the environment, the routing modes as default models, fetch: true to list every model the router offers, and auto-fastest-quality as the title model.

    librechat.yamlYAML
    endpoints:
      custom:
        - name: "AI Stupid Level"
          apiKey: "${ASL_ROUTER_KEY}"
          baseURL: "https://aistupidlevel.info/v1"
          models:
            default: ["auto-coding", "auto-reasoning", "auto-tooling", "auto-best", "auto-value"]
            fetch: true
          titleConvo: true
          titleModel: "auto-fastest-quality"
          modelDisplayLabel: "AI Stupid Level"
  5. Restart LibreChat and pick AI Stupid Level

    LibreChat reads librechat.yaml when it starts. The endpoint then appears in the menu as AI Stupid Level with the routing modes as models, and every reply is routed by the model name you choose.

03

Which routing mode should LibreChat use?

A routing mode goes where the tool asks for a model name. The quality modes read the same scores the leaderboard shows; the value modes choose among models within 5 points of the best and take the lowest measured cost per run. Every mode is described in the Virtual models section of the docs.

auto-best
Overall. Best combined score regardless of category; among statistically tied leaders, your tie-break decides (the cheaper by default).Top of the Combined board in the last 24 hours: DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, in a statistical tie for first place, of 22 ranked models.
auto-value
Value. Most combined-score points per measured dollar, among models within 5 points of the best one you can use.
auto-reasoning
Reasoning. Best for complex analysis, math, logic.Top of the Reasoning board in the last 24 hours: Claude Fable 5.1, in a statistical tie for first place, of 22 ranked models.
auto-fastest-quality
Speed. Among models within 5 points of the best one you can use, the fastest (measured latency) — auto-fastest has no quality bar.

24-hour boards as of 26 Oct 2026, 10:51 UTC · places follow the leaderboard’s statistical ties · the full leaderboard

Any real model id from GET /v1/models pins that model and bypasses routing; your plan allowance and key budgets still apply. Unknown auto-* names get a 400 model_not_found that lists the valid ones.

04

What LibreChat supports behind the router

  • fetch: true fills the menu from GET /v1/models, which needs a valid aism_ key; the default list shows the routing modes first.
  • Conversation titles use auto-fastest-quality: the fastest model among those within 5 points of the best one you can use.
  • Embeddings for RAG go through POST /v1/embeddings, which requires an active OpenAI provider key.
  • Text only: a request with images, audio or files gets a 400 unsupported_content.

05

LibreChat not working with the router?

The errors a tool shows, with the fix from the docs’ error table and the help centre.

401 invalid_api_key
Missing or invalid aism_ key. Check the key is correct and not revoked, and that the tool sends it as Authorization: Bearer aism_…. If a field insists on an sk- prefix, sk-aism_… is accepted: the prefix is stripped automatically. A key that had an expiry date and passed it gets 401 expired_api_key, and the message says when.
400 model_not_found
An unknown auto-* name is a 400 that lists the valid routing modes. For a real model id, check the spelling: direct pin routing infers the provider from the model name prefix, and GET /v1/models lists every id you can use.
No models in the dropdown
The tool fills its list from GET /v1/models, which requires a valid aism_ key. Check that the key and the base URL https://aistupidlevel.info/v1 are both in place.
400 provider_key_rejected or no_provider_keys
Your provider key is missing or was refused. Add or update it under Providers, re-check it on the provider’s dashboard, and make sure it has active credits and the right permissions.
Streaming
Set stream: true. Text arrives as the model writes it (X-AISM-Streaming-Mode: native); tool calls arrive in one chunk each once the model has finished them, then the finish reason, then usage if you set stream_options.include_usage. If the chosen model fails before sending anything, or its provider sends nothing for 120 seconds, the next fallback is tried.
400 unsupported_content
The router routes text only, on purpose: it picks a model from benchmark results for coding, reasoning and tool use, and none of those measure image, audio or file understanding. Send such requests to the provider directly.
429 allowance_exhausted
This month’s requests are used up and you have no prepaid credits. Credits top up the allowance; moving up a plan is the cheaper way to buy regular volume.

06

Questions about LibreChat and the Smart Router

What does fetch: true do?

It makes LibreChat call GET /v1/models and list every model the router offers: the auto-* routing modes plus every real model you can pin. The default list in the sample puts the routing modes first. The call needs a valid aism_ key.

Why auto-fastest-quality for titles?

A title is a short, cheap request, and auto-fastest-quality picks the fastest model among those within 5 points of the best one you can use, so titles come back quickly without dropping to a weak model. The chat itself uses whichever mode you choose in the menu.

Does this cost extra?

No. You pay the providers directly for tokens, with your own keys; the router adds nothing to token prices. The Free plan includes 1,000 routed requests a month (Pro Intelligence 10,000, Developer 100,000, Teams 1,000,000), and prepaid credits cover any beyond that at $5 per 10,000. Only successful requests count. No card for the Free plan.

Does RAG work?

Document embeddings go through POST /v1/embeddings, which proxies to OpenAI’s text-embedding-3-small (also auto-embedding) and text-embedding-3-large. It requires an active OpenAI provider key under Providers; each call counts as one request.

Where does the key go?

In the environment as ASL_ROUTER_KEY, which the sample reads with apiKey: "${ASL_ROUTER_KEY}". Keeping it out of librechat.yaml lets the file be shared or committed without the key.

07

Other tools that work with the Smart Router

Every tool takes the same base URL and key. The integrations hub lists them all; the docs add samples for frameworks and SDKs.

Connect LibreChat in a few minutes

A free account gives you a router key, the Providers page for your own keys, and the request allowance. No card.

Get a free router key

1,000 routed requests a month free · your own provider keys · no card