curl --request GET \
--url https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id} \
--header 'X-Api-Key: <api-key>'import requests
url = "https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}"
headers = {"X-Api-Key": "<api-key>"}
response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)
print(response.text)const options = {method: 'GET', headers: {'X-Api-Key': '<api-key>'}};
fetch('https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}', options)
.then(res => res.json())
.then(res => console.log(res))
.catch(err => console.error(err));<?php
$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt_array($curl, [
CURLOPT_URL => "https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}",
CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
CURLOPT_ENCODING => "",
CURLOPT_MAXREDIRS => 10,
CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 30,
CURLOPT_HTTP_VERSION => CURL_HTTP_VERSION_1_1,
CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST => "GET",
CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
"X-Api-Key: <api-key>"
],
]);
$response = curl_exec($curl);
$err = curl_error($curl);
curl_close($curl);
if ($err) {
echo "cURL Error #:" . $err;
} else {
echo $response;
}package main
import (
"fmt"
"net/http"
"io"
)
func main() {
url := "https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}"
req, _ := http.NewRequest("GET", url, nil)
req.Header.Add("X-Api-Key", "<api-key>")
res, _ := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
defer res.Body.Close()
body, _ := io.ReadAll(res.Body)
fmt.Println(string(body))
}HttpResponse<String> response = Unirest.get("https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}")
.header("X-Api-Key", "<api-key>")
.asString();require 'uri'
require 'net/http'
url = URI("https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}")
http = Net::HTTP.new(url.host, url.port)
http.use_ssl = true
request = Net::HTTP::Get.new(url)
request["X-Api-Key"] = '<api-key>'
response = http.request(request)
puts response.read_body{
"id": "char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2NABCDEFGHJKMR",
"object": "character",
"name": "Aurora the Adventurer",
"status": "ready",
"nudity": "clothed",
"refs": [
{
"pose": "front",
"view": "full_front",
"source": "generated",
"url": "https://storage-host.example/storage/v1/object/sign/characters/full_front.jpg?token=eyJhbGciOi..."
}
],
"views": [
{
"view": "full_front",
"status": "generated",
"url": null,
"nudity": "clothed",
"reason": null,
"detected_view": null,
"made_from": [
"head_front",
"full_front"
]
}
],
"build": {
"missing_views": [
"full_front",
"full_right"
],
"cost_credits": 123,
"per_view_credits": 123
},
"created_at": "2026-05-08T10:00:00Z",
"updated_at": "2026-05-08T10:00:00Z",
"client_reference_id": "bot_8472",
"attributes": {
"gender": "female",
"age": 28,
"ethnicity": "east-asian",
"hair_color": "black",
"hair_style": "shoulder-length straight",
"eye_color": "brown",
"body_type": "athletic",
"additional_details": "small scar above right eyebrow; warm smile"
},
"error_message": null,
"aurous_version": "2026-08-26"
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}Retrieve a character
Fetch a character by ID. Use this to poll the synthesize flow.
curl --request GET \
--url https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id} \
--header 'X-Api-Key: <api-key>'import requests
url = "https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}"
headers = {"X-Api-Key": "<api-key>"}
response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)
print(response.text)const options = {method: 'GET', headers: {'X-Api-Key': '<api-key>'}};
fetch('https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}', options)
.then(res => res.json())
.then(res => console.log(res))
.catch(err => console.error(err));<?php
$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt_array($curl, [
CURLOPT_URL => "https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}",
CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
CURLOPT_ENCODING => "",
CURLOPT_MAXREDIRS => 10,
CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 30,
CURLOPT_HTTP_VERSION => CURL_HTTP_VERSION_1_1,
CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST => "GET",
CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
"X-Api-Key: <api-key>"
],
]);
$response = curl_exec($curl);
$err = curl_error($curl);
curl_close($curl);
if ($err) {
echo "cURL Error #:" . $err;
} else {
echo $response;
}package main
import (
"fmt"
"net/http"
"io"
)
func main() {
url := "https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}"
req, _ := http.NewRequest("GET", url, nil)
req.Header.Add("X-Api-Key", "<api-key>")
res, _ := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
defer res.Body.Close()
body, _ := io.ReadAll(res.Body)
fmt.Println(string(body))
}HttpResponse<String> response = Unirest.get("https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}")
.header("X-Api-Key", "<api-key>")
.asString();require 'uri'
require 'net/http'
url = URI("https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}")
http = Net::HTTP.new(url.host, url.port)
http.use_ssl = true
request = Net::HTTP::Get.new(url)
request["X-Api-Key"] = '<api-key>'
response = http.request(request)
puts response.read_body{
"id": "char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2NABCDEFGHJKMR",
"object": "character",
"name": "Aurora the Adventurer",
"status": "ready",
"nudity": "clothed",
"refs": [
{
"pose": "front",
"view": "full_front",
"source": "generated",
"url": "https://storage-host.example/storage/v1/object/sign/characters/full_front.jpg?token=eyJhbGciOi..."
}
],
"views": [
{
"view": "full_front",
"status": "generated",
"url": null,
"nudity": "clothed",
"reason": null,
"detected_view": null,
"made_from": [
"head_front",
"full_front"
]
}
],
"build": {
"missing_views": [
"full_front",
"full_right"
],
"cost_credits": 123,
"per_view_credits": 123
},
"created_at": "2026-05-08T10:00:00Z",
"updated_at": "2026-05-08T10:00:00Z",
"client_reference_id": "bot_8472",
"attributes": {
"gender": "female",
"age": 28,
"ethnicity": "east-asian",
"hair_color": "black",
"hair_style": "shoulder-length straight",
"eye_color": "brown",
"body_type": "athletic",
"additional_details": "small scar above right eyebrow; warm smile"
},
"error_message": null,
"aurous_version": "2026-08-26"
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}{
"error": {
"type": "invalid_request",
"code": "balance_too_low",
"message": "Team available balance is 1.5 credits, generation requires 2.0.",
"doc_url": "https://docs.aurous-labs.com/errors#balance_too_low",
"request_id": "req_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM",
"param": "prompt",
"reason": "wrong_view",
"detected_view": "full_left"
}
}GET /v1/characters/{id} returns a single character. Use it to:
- Poll a newly created character until
statustransitions fromsynthesizingtoready(orfailed). Both create flows advance toreadyon their own — there is no save step. - Read the
refs[]array for proxy URLs you can render in your UI. - Inspect
attributesfor the typed identity fields the platform stored.
Status lifecycle
| Status | Meaning | Customer action |
|---|---|---|
draft | Created by POST /v1/characters/drafts and not built yet. Nothing has been charged and it cannot be used for generation. | Fill views with PUT /v1/characters/{id}/refs/{view}, then POST /v1/characters/{id}/build. |
synthesizing | References are being built. | Poll. Views render concurrently, each in roughly 60–180 seconds, so allow a few minutes end to end — or subscribe to the character.completed webhook. |
ready | Usable as character_id on POST /v1/images or POST /v1/videos. | Reference on generation. Both create flows land here on their own. |
reviewing | The render finished and is waiting on your review. Reached by POST /v1/characters/{id}/build without auto_save: true, and by POST /v1/characters/{id}/resynthesize. | Inspect refs. Call POST /v1/characters/{id}/save to move to ready, or change the set first — at reviewing you can regenerate one view, resynthesize every generated view, or PUT a photo to replace a view. A build is not available here: it accepts only draft and failed, and a character that reached reviewing has nothing missing to render. Pass auto_save: true on the build to skip this stop entirely. |
failed | The build failed. error_message carries the reason — one of synthesis_failed, synthesis_timeout, provider_unavailable. | On a character you assembled with the builder, call POST /v1/characters/{id}/build again — your uploaded references are stored on the character, not as expiring upload tickets, so nothing needs re-uploading. On a one-shot character, call POST /v1/characters/{id}/resynthesize to retry — it reuses the stored attributes. Resynthesize returns 422 uploads_expired if the original uploaded photos are gone; delete via DELETE /v1/characters/{id} and recreate with fresh upload_ids in that case. |
views[] is the canonical read model for what a character actually has, build for what a render would add and cost. Both are explained in Views and lifecycle.
Soft-deleted characters return 404 resource_not_found on this endpoint — the V1 surface treats them as gone for IDOR safety. If you need to confirm a soft-delete landed, the 404 itself is the confirmation.
Examples
curl https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2VNABCDEFGHJKM \
-H "X-Api-Key: $AUROUS_API_KEY"
async function pollUntilReady(id: string): Promise<Character> {
for (let i = 0; i < 60; i++) {
const c = await fetch(
`https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/${id}`,
{ headers: { "X-Api-Key": process.env.AUROUS_API_KEY! } },
).then((r) => r.json());
if (c.status === "ready" || c.status === "reviewing") return c;
if (c.status === "failed") throw new Error(c.error_message);
await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 2000));
}
throw new Error("timed out waiting for character");
}
import os, time, requests
def poll_until_ready(id: str):
for _ in range(60):
c = requests.get(
f"https://api.aurous-labs.com/v1/characters/{id}",
headers={"X-Api-Key": os.environ["AUROUS_API_KEY"]},
).json()
if c["status"] in ("ready", "reviewing"):
return c
if c["status"] == "failed":
raise RuntimeError(c["error_message"])
time.sleep(2)
raise TimeoutError("character did not finish in time")
Limits
- Rate limit: bucket
characters_get— 120 requests/min sustained, 240 burst per team.
Errors
| Code | HTTP | When |
|---|---|---|
resource_not_found | 404 | Unknown ID, soft-deleted character, or character belongs to a different team. The 404 is intentional — cross-team existence is never leaked. |
Common pitfalls
refs[].urlis a proxy URL — do not assume it points at any specific storage host. Treat it as opaque and re-fetch as needed; URLs are valid for ~24h.- Polling at 2-second intervals is plenty for synthesize. Tighter polling only burns rate-limit budget.
- Soft-deleted characters return 404 on this endpoint — if you want to keep an audit trail of past characters, mirror them in your own database before calling DELETE.
- A
draftis a real character with a real id, but it is not usable: attaching it toPOST /v1/imagesorPOST /v1/videosreturns400 character_not_ready. Treat anything other thanreadyas not-yet-usable.
2026-08-26 contract. No Aurous-Version pin isolates them: the version catalogue carries image and video pricing pointers only, not character pricing or the size of the reference set. Pinning an earlier Aurous-Version restores neither the smaller reference set nor the previous price. A character created before 2026-09-14 keeps the references it already has — add either of the two newer views on demand with POST /v1/characters/{id}/refs/{view}/regenerate; every character created on or after that date carries eight.Authorizations
Your team API key (starts with al_live_).
Headers
Optional API version pin (YYYY-MM-DD). Omit the header to receive the platform default, currently 2026-08-26.
^\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}$"2026-08-26"
Path Parameters
Opaque character ID
"char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2NABCDEFGHJKMR"
Response
Character details
Opaque character ID.
"char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2NABCDEFGHJKMR"
Discriminator
character "character"
Display name.
"Aurora the Adventurer"
Lifecycle state. draft: references are being assembled; nothing has been charged and the character cannot be used for generation. New lifecycle states may be added in future — treat any status other than ready as "not yet usable". synthesizing: references are being built. ready: usable on POST /v1/images — both create flows advance here on their own. reviewing: reached only after POST /:id/resynthesize or POST /:id/build; call POST /:id/save to return to ready. failed: the build failed; error_message carries the reason and POST /:id/build (builder characters) or POST /:id/resynthesize retries. deleted: soft-deleted (filtered out of the list endpoint).
draft, synthesizing, reviewing, ready, failed, deleted "ready"
What the reference set is rendered as — nude unless you chose clothed, or — when you omitted nudity — your team's default is clothed. An explicit value always wins. Fixed once the references are built.
nude, clothed "clothed"
Reference images, one per view the character has. A character built today has eight; an older one can have fewer than eight (typically six, some of the oldest four). Do not assume a count — read views[], the canonical read model for new integrations, or build.missing_views. refs[] lists only the references that exist.
Show child attributes
Show child attributes
One entry per named view, in canonical order — every reference that maps to a named view, keyed by view, plus what is missing or was rejected. A reference from before named views existed (refs[].view is other) appears only in refs[].
Show child attributes
Show child attributes
What a build would render and cost right now. Always present.
Show child attributes
Show child attributes
Creation timestamp (ISO 8601).
"2026-05-08T10:00:00Z"
Last-update timestamp (ISO 8601).
"2026-05-08T10:00:00Z"
Caller-supplied reference echoed back (the value sent on create). Null if unset.
"bot_8472"
Character attributes. Null when unset.
Show child attributes
Show child attributes
Machine-readable failure code from the most recent synthesize/resynthesize attempt. One of synthesis_failed, synthesis_timeout, provider_unavailable — a closed set to switch on, not customer-facing prose. Null when the most recent attempt succeeded (or none has run yet). Set on failed, but NOT failed-exclusive: a failed resynthesize restores the character to its prior working status (reviewing) rather than overwriting a good generation, so a reviewing row can carry a non-null code here — check this field for failure, not status. Cleared on the next resynthesize attempt and on success.
null
API contract version applied at the time this row was minted (D25 — frozen for replay across future version bumps).
"2026-08-26"

