Anthropic SDK

The Anthropic SDK is the official library for interacting with Claude in your applications. By routing SDK requests through Shinzo, you gain visibility into your AI usage patterns, token consumption, response times, and costs.

How It Works

Shinzo acts as a transparent proxy between your application and the Anthropic API. When you configure the Anthropic SDK to use Shinzo:

Your requests are sent to Shinzo instead of directly to Anthropic
Shinzo authenticates your request using your Shinzo API key
The request is forwarded to Anthropic with your stored Anthropic credentials
Analytics are recorded (tokens, latency, errors, etc.)
The response is returned to your application

Prerequisites

Before configuring the Anthropic SDK with Shinzo, you need:

A Shinzo account - Sign up at app.shinzo.ai
Your Anthropic API key stored in Shinzo - Add it in Settings > API Keys > Provider Keys
A Shinzo API key - Create one in Settings > API Keys > Shinzo Keys

Subscription-based access is not supported. Shinzo requires your own Anthropic API key from the Anthropic Console. OAuth tokens from Claude subscriptions (e.g., Claude Pro/Team subscriptions) cannot be used with Shinzo.

Configuration Methods

Shinzo supports two methods for configuring the Anthropic SDK. Both methods use your Shinzo API key in place of your Anthropic key.

Constructor Parameters (Recommended)
Environment Variables

Method 1: Constructor Parameters

Pass the configuration directly to the SDK constructor. This is the recommended approach as it keeps configuration explicit and portable.

Add your Anthropic API key to Shinzo

Go to app.shinzo.ai
Navigate to Settings > API Keys
Click the Provider Keys tab
Click Add Provider Key
Select Anthropic as the provider
Paste your Anthropic API key and add a label
Click Save

Your key will be validated and encrypted before storage.

Create a Shinzo API key

In the API Keys page, click the Shinzo Keys tab
Click Create Key
Give your key a descriptive name (e.g., “Production App”)
Copy the generated key (you won’t see it again)

Configure the SDK

Initialize the Anthropic client with your Shinzo API key and the Shinzo base URL:

import Anthropic from "@anthropic-ai/sdk";

const anthropic = new Anthropic({
  apiKey: "sk_shinzo_live_your_key_here",
  baseURL: "https://api.app.shinzo.ai/spotlight/anthropic"
});

const message = await anthropic.messages.create({
  model: "claude-sonnet-4-5",
  max_tokens: 1000,
  messages: [
    {
      role: "user",
      content: "Hello, Claude"
    }
  ]
});

console.log(message);

Replace sk_shinzo_live_your_key_here with your actual Shinzo API key.

Verify the configuration

Run your application and make a test request. Then check the Shinzo Dashboard to see your request logged.

If your request appears in the dashboard, you’re all set.

Benefits:

Configuration is explicit and self-documenting
Easy to use different keys for different environments
Works well with dependency injection and testing
No environment variable conflicts

Method 2: Environment Variables

Set environment variables and let the SDK read them automatically. This is useful for containerized deployments or when you want to keep configuration separate from code.

Add your Anthropic API key to Shinzo

Go to app.shinzo.ai
Navigate to Settings > API Keys
Click the Provider Keys tab
Click Add Provider Key
Select Anthropic as the provider
Paste your Anthropic API key and add a label
Click Save

Create a Shinzo API key

In the API Keys page, click the Shinzo Keys tab
Click Create Key
Give your key a descriptive name
Copy the generated key

Set environment variables

Set the following environment variables:

macOS / Linux
Windows (PowerShell)
.env file

Add to your shell configuration file (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, etc.) or set them in your deployment environment:

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="sk_shinzo_live_your_key_here"
export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="https://api.app.shinzo.ai/spotlight/anthropic"

Then reload your shell:

source ~/.zshrc  # or source ~/.bashrc

[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable('ANTHROPIC_API_KEY', 'sk_shinzo_live_your_key_here', 'User')
[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable('ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL', 'https://api.app.shinzo.ai/spotlight/anthropic', 'User')

Restart your terminal for changes to take effect.

Create a .env file in your project root:

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk_shinzo_live_your_key_here
ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=https://api.app.shinzo.ai/spotlight/anthropic

Load it with your preferred library (e.g., dotenv for Node.js, python-dotenv for Python).

Initialize the SDK

Initialize the Anthropic client without parameters - it will read from environment variables:

import Anthropic from "@anthropic-ai/sdk";

// SDK reads from ANTHROPIC_API_KEY and ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL env vars
const anthropic = new Anthropic();

const message = await anthropic.messages.create({
  model: "claude-sonnet-4-5",
  max_tokens: 1000,
  messages: [
    {
      role: "user",
      content: "Hello, Claude"
    }
  ]
});

console.log(message);

Verify the configuration

Run your application and make a test request. Then check the Shinzo Dashboard to see your request logged.

If your request appears in the dashboard, you’re all set.

Benefits:

Configuration is separate from code
Easy to manage different environments (dev, staging, production)
Works well with container orchestration and CI/CD
Follows 12-factor app principles

Comparison of Methods

Feature	Constructor Parameters	Environment Variables
Configuration location	In code	External to code
Best for	Explicit configuration, testing	Containerized deployments, CI/CD
Multiple environments	Pass different values	Different env vars per environment
Code readability	Self-documenting	Requires checking environment

Troubleshooting

Requests not appearing in dashboard

Verify your configuration is correct:
- Check that baseURL / ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL is set to https://api.app.shinzo.ai/spotlight/anthropic
- Check that apiKey / ANTHROPIC_API_KEY contains your Shinzo API key (not your Anthropic key)
Ensure the Shinzo API key is valid and not revoked
Verify you have a provider key configured in Shinzo (Settings > API Keys > Provider Keys)

Authentication errors

401 Unauthorized: Your Shinzo API key is invalid or revoked
403 Forbidden - Subscription not supported: You are attempting to use a Claude subscription OAuth token. Shinzo requires your own Anthropic API key from the Anthropic Console.
403 Forbidden - Invalid key: Your Anthropic key (stored in Shinzo) may be invalid or expired. Update it in Settings > API Keys > Provider Keys.

Connection timeouts

Verify you can reach api.app.shinzo.ai:

curl -I https://api.app.shinzo.ai/health

Check your network/firewall settings
If using a corporate proxy, ensure it allows HTTPS connections to Shinzo

Next Steps

View Dashboard

Explore your AI usage analytics in the Shinzo dashboard.

Claude Code Setup

Configure Shinzo analytics for Claude Code CLI.

Getting Started

AI Tools

Concepts

Platform

Anthropic SDK

Anthropic SDK

How It Works

Prerequisites

Configuration Methods

Method 1: Constructor Parameters

Method 2: Environment Variables

Comparison of Methods

Troubleshooting

Next Steps

View Dashboard

Claude Code Setup

Getting Started

AI Tools

Concepts

Platform

​Anthropic SDK

​How It Works

​Prerequisites

​Configuration Methods

​Method 1: Constructor Parameters

​Method 2: Environment Variables

​Comparison of Methods

​Troubleshooting

​Next Steps

View Dashboard

Claude Code Setup

Anthropic SDK

How It Works

Prerequisites

Configuration Methods

Method 1: Constructor Parameters

Method 2: Environment Variables

Comparison of Methods

Troubleshooting

Next Steps