How do I fix Invalid Authentication (401) errors with W&B Inference? - Weights & Biases Documentation

A 401 Invalid Authentication error means your API key is invalid or your W&B project entity/name is incorrect.

Verify your API key

Create a new API key at User Settings.
Store your API key securely.

Check your project configuration

Ensure your project is formatted correctly as <your-team>/<your-project>: Python example:

client = openai.OpenAI(
    base_url='https://api.inference.wandb.ai/v1',
    api_key="<your-api-key>",
    project="<your-team>/<your-project>",  # Must match your W&B team and project
)

Bash example:

curl https://api.inference.wandb.ai/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <your-api-key>" \
  -H "OpenAI-Project: <your-team>/<your-project>"

Common mistakes

Using personal entity instead of team name
Misspelling team or project name
Missing forward slash between team and project
Using an expired or deleted API key

Still having issues?

Verify the team and project exist in your W&B account
Ensure you have access to the specified team
Try creating a new API key if the current one isn’t working

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