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  • Use a model API key

    Connect Midscene using an API key from a model provider. This guide covers choosing a model, configuring it, and verifying the connection. If you already have a ChatGPT subscription, you can also follow Use a ChatGPT subscription.

    The model configuration shown on this page consists of environment variables. Provide it according to how you use Midscene:

    • In Playground, paste the configuration text from this page directly into the settings page.
    • With the SDK or CLI, load the configuration as described in Set environment variables.

    For complete parameter definitions, see Model configuration reference.

    Supported models

    Midscene supports these multimodal models for operating user interfaces: Doubao Seed, Qwen, DeepSeek, Google Gemini, OpenAI GPT, Moonshot Kimi, Xiaomi MiMo, and Zhipu GLM-V, as well as the other compatible models AutoGLM and UI-TARS described below.

    Each configuration requires a Base URL, API key, model name, and MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY. The model family (MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY) determines how Midscene adapts to the selected model.

    Doubao Seed Series

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    2.x series
    doubao-seed-2-1-pro-260915 doubao-seed-2-1-turbo-260628
    doubao-seeddoubao-seed-2-1-turbo-260628 offers fast localization and strong localization quality. Recommended.
    1.x series
    Doubao-Seed-1.6-Vision Doubao-Seed-1.8
    doubao-seedThe 1.x series is an older generation of Doubao models and is no longer competitive overall. We recommend using the 2.x series instead. For compatibility with existing configurations, MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="doubao-vision" remains supported. New configurations should use doubao-seed.

    Environment variable configuration example, using doubao-seed-2-1-turbo-260628:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://ark.cn-beijing.volces.com/api/v3" # Volcano Engine endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="doubao-seed-2-1-turbo-260628"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="doubao-seed"

    If your Volcano Engine account has Fast Tier quota enabled, add the extra request body below to use it. This usually improves model response speed by about 30%-50%.

    MIDSCENE_MODEL_EXTRA_BODY_JSON={"service_tier":"fast"}

    Qwen Series

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    Qwen3.x series
    qwen3.7-plus qwen3.5-plus qwen3.6-plus
    qwen3Based on localization evaluation results, the recommended order is Qwen3.7 > Qwen3.5 > Qwen3.6. The previous qwen3.5 and qwen3.6 families remain compatible.
    Qwen3-VL series
    qwen3-vl-plus
    qwen3-vlAs an older model generation, it is not recommended. Use the Qwen3.x series instead.
    Qwen2.5-VL series
    qwen-vl-max-latest
    qwen2.5-vlAs an older model generation, it is not recommended. Use the Qwen3.x series instead.

    Environment variable configuration example, using qwen3.7-plus:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1" # Alibaba Cloud endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="qwen3.7-plus"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="qwen3" # If you use another Qwen version, replace this with the corresponding model family

    DeepSeek Series

    Midscene supports DeepSeek starting from v1.12.0.

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    DeepSeek V4 series
    deepseek-flash (V4.1 Flash) deepseek-v4-flash-vision-exp (V4 Flash Vision)
    deepseekDeepSeek-V4-Pro does not support visual input and cannot be used with Midscene.

    Environment variable configuration example, using deepseek-flash:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://api.deepseek.com" # DeepSeek API endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="deepseek-flash"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="deepseek"

    Google Gemini Series

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    Gemini 3.x series
    gemini-3.5-flash gemini-3-flash-preview
    geminigemini-3.5-flash currently performs best for localization in our private evaluation set.

    Environment variable configuration example, using gemini-3.5-flash:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/openai/" # Google Gemini API endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="gemini-3.5-flash"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="gemini"

    OpenAI GPT Series

    Info

    To connect using your ChatGPT subscription, see Use a ChatGPT subscription.

    • Common model provider: OpenAI
    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    GPT-6 series
    gpt-6-astra gpt-6-sol gpt-6-luna
    gpt-6GPT-6 Sol delivers excellent visual localization accuracy at just one-fifth the price of GPT-6 Astra. GPT-6 Luna is very inexpensive while also offering good visual localization capabilities.
    GPT-5 series
    gpt-5.4 gpt-5.5 gpt-5.6-sol gpt-5.6-terra gpt-5.6-luna
    gpt-5Models before GPT-5.4 do not support visual localization and can only be used as Planning or Insight models. In practical localization tests, GPT-5.5 and GPT-5.6 perform noticeably better than GPT-5.4; we recommend using GPT-5.5 or GPT-5.6 first.

    Use an API Key

    Environment variable configuration example, using gpt-6-sol:

    ?
    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://api.openai.com/v1" # OpenAI API endpoint; or your compatible endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="gpt-6-sol"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="gpt-6"

    Enable Fast mode (service_tier="fast")

    Both GPT-5.6 Sol and GPT-6 Astra support Fast mode. Add the service_tier request body parameter to enable it. For example, with GPT-5.6 Sol:

    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="gpt-5.6-sol"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="gpt-5"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_EXTRA_BODY_JSON='{"service_tier":"fast"}'

    According to OpenAI, Fast mode can deliver up to 2–2.5× the speed at twice the Standard rate. Refer to the official documentation for current speed, pricing, and usage restrictions.

    To reuse a Codex CLI session, see Use Codex App Server.

    When using GPT, note the following:

    • GPT-5.4 or later is required for UI localization. Midscene does not support earlier versions.
    • According to OpenAI, GPT-5 may still struggle with non-Latin text and with text that is too small in the image. See the Images and Vision guide.
    • In the computer use guide, OpenAI says they observe good performance around 1440x900 and 1600x900. We recommend adjusting screenshot sizes accordingly. In Midscene, you can control screenshot compression with screenshotShrinkFactor in the agent options. For browser automation, you can also control the page size and scale through the browser viewport.
    • Azure OpenAI's Chat Completions API may not handle "detail": "original" correctly, causing click-coordinate offsets. If you encounter this issue, you can switch to the Responses API. See Clicks are offset when using Azure OpenAI.

    Moonshot Kimi Series

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    K3 series
    kimi-k3
    kimi3According to the Kimi documentation, K3 always has reasoning enabled and cannot be disabled. Its reasoning effort defaults to max.
    K2.x series
    kimi-k2.5 kimi-k2.6
    kimi—

    Environment variable configuration example, using kimi-k3:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://api.moonshot.cn/v1" # Moonshot AI API endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="kimi-k3"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="kimi3" # For kimi-k2.6, use "kimi"

    Xiaomi MiMo Series

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    V2.x series
    mimo-v2.6-pro mimo-v2.6-flash mimo-v2.6-pro-ultraspeed mimo-v2.5
    xiaomi-mimoAll 2.6 models support multimodal input; for 2.5, only the Omni series supports multimodal input.

    Environment variable configuration example, using mimo-v2.6-pro:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://api.xiaomimimo.com/v1" # Xiaomi MiMo API endpoint
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="mimo-v2.6-pro"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="xiaomi-mimo"

    Zhipu GLM-V Series

    Model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILYNotes
    GLM-5V series
    glm-5v-turbo
    glm-v—
    GLM-4.6 series
    glm-4.6v
    glm-vglm-4.6v is open-source.

    Environment variable configuration example, using glm-5v-turbo:

    🎯 Use as default model
    🧠 Use as Planning model
    🔎 Use as Insight model
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://open.bigmodel.cn/api/paas/v4" # BigModel API endpoint; use https://api.z.ai/api/paas/v4 for Z.AI
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="glm-5v-turbo"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="glm-v"

    Learn more about the open-source GLM-4.6V model

    Set environment variables

    Midscene reads model configuration from environment variables. Choose the method that matches how you use Midscene, or keep using your project's existing environment-management approach.

    Set environment variables in the current shell

    The following example works in Bash and Zsh. These variables are available only to the current shell session and its child processes.

    # Replace every value with the configuration for your selected model provider
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://replace-with-your-model-service-url/v1"
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="replace-with-your-api-key"
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="replace-with-your-model-name"
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="replace-with-the-family-for-your-model"

    Load .env with the CLI

    Create a .env file in the directory where you run the midscene command. @midscene/cli loads this file automatically.

    # Replace every value with the configuration for your selected model provider
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://replace-with-your-model-service-url/v1"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="replace-with-your-api-key"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="replace-with-your-model-name"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="replace-with-the-family-for-your-model"

    Do not add export at the beginning of each line. When running YAML tasks, existing variables in the current shell take precedence over values with the same name in .env. To let .env override them, use --dotenv-override.

    midscene model verify is an exception. This command uses values from .env to override variables with the same name in the current shell.

    Load .env with dotenv for the JavaScript SDK

    The Midscene JavaScript SDK reads model configuration directly from the Node.js process environment (process.env). If the shell, container, or deployment platform already provides these variables, you do not need dotenv. Use dotenv only when the configuration is stored in a .env file and needs to be loaded into process.env.

    npm
    yarn
    pnpm
    bun
    deno
    npm install dotenv

    Create a .env file in the directory where you run the script:

    # Replace every value with the configuration for your selected model provider
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://replace-with-your-model-service-url/v1"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="replace-with-your-api-key"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="replace-with-your-model-name"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="replace-with-the-family-for-your-model"

    Import dotenv before creating a Midscene Agent:

    import 'dotenv/config';

    If a variable with the same name already exists in the current shell, dotenv keeps the existing value by default. The Midscene demo project uses this loading method as well.

    Verify the setup

    After setting the environment variables, run one of the following commands:

    # Use the CLI installed in the current project
    npx midscene model verify
    
    # Or use the latest CLI version
    npx @midscene/cli@latest model verify

    For failed checks and connectivity problems, see Model debugging and observability.

    Optional: configure multiple models

    Multi-model setup is optional. For most use cases, a Default model is enough for UI localization and actions. Add a Planning or Insight model only when complex planning or page understanding requires a separate model. You can configure either one or both.

    For guidance on when to combine models, see Model strategy.

    The following example uses Qwen 3.5 as the Default model for visual grounding. GPT-5.4 serves as the Planning and Insight models for complex reasoning.

    # Default multimodal model: Qwen 3.5
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://..."       # Qwen 3.5 endpoint
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="..."                # Your Qwen 3.5 API key
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="qwen3.5-plus"
    export MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="qwen3.5"
    
    # Planning model: GPT-5.4
    export MIDSCENE_PLANNING_MODEL_API_KEY="sk-..."    # Your GPT-5.4 API key
    export MIDSCENE_PLANNING_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://..."
    export MIDSCENE_PLANNING_MODEL_NAME="gpt-5.4"
    export MIDSCENE_PLANNING_MODEL_FAMILY="gpt-5"
    
    # Insight model: GPT-5.4
    export MIDSCENE_INSIGHT_MODEL_API_KEY="sk-..."     # Your GPT-5.4 API key
    export MIDSCENE_INSIGHT_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://..."
    export MIDSCENE_INSIGHT_MODEL_NAME="gpt-5.4"
    export MIDSCENE_INSIGHT_MODEL_FAMILY="gpt-5"

    Other compatible models

    The following smaller models are also compatible with Midscene and designed for automation. They require less deployment hardware but may struggle with complex tasks or large screenshots. Evaluate them against your tasks and deployment constraints before choosing one.

    Zhipu AutoGLM Series

    Zhipu AutoGLM is an open-source mobile UI automation model (9B parameters) from Zhipu AI.

    After obtaining an API key from Z.AI (Global) or BigModel (CN), configure:

    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://api.z.ai/api/paas/v4" # Or https://open.bigmodel.cn/api/paas/v4
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="......"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="autoglm-phone"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="auto-glm" # Or "auto-glm-multilingual"

    About MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY Configuration

    AutoGLM provides two model versions, distinguished by MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY:

    • auto-glm - Corresponds to AutoGLM-Phone-9B, optimized for Chinese mobile applications
    • auto-glm-multilingual - Corresponds to AutoGLM-Phone-9B-Multilingual, supports English and other languages

    Choose the appropriate version based on your application language.

    Info

    AutoGLM is best suited for mobile interaction. APIs such as aiAssert and aiQuery require page understanding. When using these APIs, configure a separate Insight model with the MIDSCENE_INSIGHT_MODEL_... environment variables. See Model strategy for details.

    Learn more about Zhipu AutoGLM

    UI-TARS Series

    Use the deployed doubao-1.5-ui-tars on Volcano Engine:

    MIDSCENE_MODEL_BASE_URL="https://ark.cn-beijing.volces.com/api/v3"
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_API_KEY="...."
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_NAME="ep-2025..." # Inference endpoint ID or model name from Volcano Engine
    MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="vlm-ui-tars-doubao-1.5"

    About MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY

    This variable selects the UI-TARS version. Supported values:

    • vlm-ui-tars – for the 1.0 release
    • vlm-ui-tars-doubao – for the 1.5 release deployed on Volcano Engine (equivalent to vlm-ui-tars-doubao-1.5)
    • vlm-ui-tars-doubao-1.5 – for the 1.5 release deployed on Volcano Engine
    Info

    The legacy configurations MIDSCENE_USE_VLM_UI_TARS=DOUBAO or MIDSCENE_USE_VLM_UI_TARS=1.5 are still supported but deprecated. Please migrate to MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY.

    Migration mapping:

    • MIDSCENE_USE_VLM_UI_TARS=1.0 → MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="vlm-ui-tars"
    • MIDSCENE_USE_VLM_UI_TARS=1.5 → MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="vlm-ui-tars-doubao-1.5"
    • MIDSCENE_USE_VLM_UI_TARS=DOUBAO → MIDSCENE_MODEL_FAMILY="vlm-ui-tars-doubao"

    Next steps