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How to Use Codex with Novita AI Models

Complete Setup Guide for Maximum Development Efficiency

By Novita AI

September 15, 2025

5 minutes of reading

What is Codex CLI?

A terminal-based coding agent that combines local execution with cloud AI capabilities. Unlike code generation tools that only produce code snippets, Codex CLI can understand your entire project, execute the code it creates, debug issues, and iterate until solutions work correctly.

Local-First Architecture

Runs entirely on your machine while making API calls to AI models

Project Understanding

Reads your entire codebase and understands existing patterns

Security Features

Runs in network-disabled, directory-sandboxed environments

codex --help

$ codex --help

Codex CLI - AI Coding Assistant

Usage: codex [OPTIONS] [PROMPT]

Options:

--model MODEL_NAME

--auto Enable auto mode

--suggest Enable suggest mode

Examples:

codex "fix this bug"

codex --auto "refactor entire module"

Why Use Third-Party APIs with Codex CLI?

Specialized Models

Access cutting-edge models like DeepSeek V3.1, Qwen Coder, and Kimi K2

Cost & Performance

Competitive pricing with models optimized for specific tasks

Custom Models

Use your own custom models quickly for specialized requirements

Reliability

Reduced rate limits and consistent access during outages

Codex CLI vs Claude Code: Key Differences

Codex CLI

Supports multiple providers
Local agent architecture
Fully open-source

Claude Code

Focuses on Claude models
Integrated experience
Proprietary core

How to Access Novita AI Models in Codex CLI

1
Prerequisites

Create an account at Novita AI
Generate your API Key from Key Management
Select a model name from Model Library
Save your API key securely

2
Installation

npm install

npm install -g @openai/codex

Homebrew (macOS)

brew install codex

3
Configuration

~/.codex/config.toml

# Basic configuration template

model

=

"MODEL_NAME"

model_provider

=

"novitaai"

[model_providers.novitaai]

name

=

"Novita AI"

base_url

=

"https://api.novita.ai/openai"

http_headers

=

{"Authorization" = "Bearer YOUR_NOVITA_API_KEY"}

wire_api

=

"chat"

Available Models

deepseek/deepseek-v3.1 Complex algorithms

qwen/qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct Code generation

moonshotai/kimi-k2-0905 Agentic workflows

Start Your AI-Powered Development Journey

Codex CLI with Novita AI models provides a powerful, flexible development environment that combines local control with cloud AI capabilities. By choosing the right model for each task, you can significantly accelerate your development workflow.

Getting Started

Start with Qwen Coder for general tasks
Experiment with specialized models
Configure your environment properly

Basic Usage

codex "Create a Python class"
codex "Review this codebase"
codex "Fix the authentication error"

About Novita AI

Novita AI is an AI cloud platform that offers developers an easy way to deploy AI models using our simple API, while also providing an affordable and reliable GPU cloud for building and scaling.