API Key
Domain: Models & Providers
Motivation
A secret key used to authenticate with an LLM provider. Stored in .env file.
Concrete Example
OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-xxx. Hermes reads this from .env. Every API call includes this key for authentication. Never shared, redacted in output.
Analogy
A house key - it proves you live there. An API key proves you have access to the LLM provider.