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vercel/ai

📈 Trending24,313TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5ActiveLicenseSetup · easy

TLDR

TypeScript library for building AI-powered apps with streaming responses and multi-provider LLM support, from the Next.js team.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Unified LLM toolkit
      Streaming responses
      AI agent support
    Tech stack
      TypeScript
      Node.js
      Next.js
      Edge runtimes
    Use cases
      Chatbots
      Coding assistants
      Document summarizers
    Providers
      Anthropic
      Google Gemini
      Multiple integrations
    Key features
      Word-by-word streaming
      Multi-step reasoning
      Tool usage

Things people build with this

USE CASE 1

Build a chat interface that streams AI responses word-by-word for a responsive user experience.

USE CASE 2

Create a coding assistant that can reason through multi-step problems and use tools to help developers.

USE CASE 3

Connect your Next.js app to multiple LLM providers without rewriting integration code for each one.

USE CASE 4

Build an autonomous agent that can break down tasks, call external APIs, and take actions on its own.

Tech stack

TypeScriptNode.jsNext.jsEdge Runtime

Getting it running

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min
Use freely for any purpose, including commercial use, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

In plain English

The Vercel AI SDK is a free, open-source TypeScript library for building applications powered by large language models (LLMs). Created by the team behind Next.js, it acts as a unified toolkit that simplifies connecting your app to AI providers like Anthropic, Google Gemini, and others, so you do not need to write separate integration code for each one. The library is especially focused on streaming responses, delivering AI-generated text to the user word by word as it is produced, rather than waiting for the full answer, which makes chat interfaces feel fast and responsive. It also supports building AI agents, which are programs that can reason through multi-step tasks, use tools, and take actions autonomously. You would reach for this SDK when building things like AI chatbots, coding assistants, document summarizers, or any TypeScript or JavaScript application that needs to talk to a language model. It works across environments including Next.js, Node.js, and edge runtimes.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Show me how to set up streaming chat responses using the Vercel AI SDK with Anthropic as the provider.
Prompt 2
How do I build an AI agent with the Vercel AI SDK that can use tools and reason through multi-step tasks?
Prompt 3
Give me a working example of connecting a Next.js app to Google Gemini using the Vercel AI SDK.
Prompt 4
How do I switch between different LLM providers (Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini) in the same app using this SDK?
Prompt 5
Show me how to implement a document summarizer using the Vercel AI SDK with streaming output.
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Generated 2026-05-18 · Model: sonnet-4-6 · Verify against the repo before relying on details.