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Image Generation

Emby supports image-generation models through the same OpenAI-compatible /v1/chat/completions API you already use for text.
If your app already supports OpenAI image responses, it works with Emby automatically. Generated images are returned as base64-encoded data URLs inside the assistant response.

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Available Models

You can view all image-generation capable models directly from: 
GET https://api.emby.dev/v1/models
Models such as qwen2.5-vl, glm-vision, deepseek-vision, and others support both generation and vision editing workflows.

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Generate an Image

Image generation works exactly like a normal chat request — just choose a vision-enabled or image-generating model. 
curl -X POST "https://api.emby.dev/v1/chat/completions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $EMBY_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "qwen2.5-vision",
    "messages": [
      {
        "role": "user",
        "content": "Generate an image of a golden retriever puppy playing in a sunny meadow"
      }
    ]
  }'

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Response Format

Emby returns image results using the standard OpenAI-style structure: 
{
  "id": "chatcmpl-123",
  "object": "chat.completion",
  "created": 1730000000,
  "model": "qwen2.5-vision",
  "choices": [
    {
      "index": 0,
      "message": {
        "role": "assistant",
        "content": "Here is your generated image:",
        "images": [
          {
            "type": "image_url",
            "image_url": {
              "url": "data:image/png;base64,<base64data>"
            }
          }
        ]
      },
      "finish_reason": "stop"
    }
  ]
}
The important part is the images array: Image Item Structure
  • type: always "image_url"
  • image_url.url: base64-encoded data:image/... URL

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Vision Support (Editing & Modifying Images)

You can send an image to the model for editing, analysis, or transformation.
Simply include a type: "image_url" or type: "file" object inside the messages. Example: 
{
  "role": "user",
  "content": [
    {
      "type": "image_url",
      "image_url": { "url": "data:image/png;base64,<your_image>" }
    },
    {
      "type": "text",
      "text": "Remove the background and convert this to a 3D style."
    }
  ]
}
Emby vision models can:
  • Edit images
  • Describe images
  • Extract text
  • Generate variations
  • Combine text + image tasks

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Using the Emby AI SDK (Full Example)

Below is a clean, ready-to-copy example using the Emby AI SDK provider.

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/api/chat/route.ts

import { streamText, convertToModelMessages } from "ai";
import { createEmby } from "@emby/ai-sdk-provider";

export async function POST(req: Request) {
  const body = await req.json();
  const emby = createEmby({
    apiKey: process.env.EMBY_API_KEY!,
    baseUrl: "https://api.emby.dev/v1"
  });

  try {
    return streamText({
      model: emby.chat("qwen2.5-vision"),
      messages: convertToModelMessages(body.messages)
    }).toUIMessageStreamResponse();
  } catch {
    return new Response(
      JSON.stringify({ error: "Emby request failed" }),
      { status: 500 }
    );
  }
}

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Rendering in Your Frontend

Below is a minimal, Emby-cleaned version of image rendering logic: 
import { extractBase64FromDataUrl } from "@/lib/image-utils";

export const ImageMessage = ({ image }) => {
  const base64 = extractBase64FromDataUrl(image.url);
  return (
    <img
      src={image.url}
      alt="Generated"
      className="rounded-lg shadow-md"
    />
  );
};

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Image Utils (Compatible With Emby)

export function extractBase64FromDataUrl(dataUrl: string) {
  if (!dataUrl.startsWith("data:")) return "";
  return dataUrl.substring(dataUrl.indexOf(",") + 1);
}

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Usage Notes

Larger Payloads

Image responses are base64-encoded, so response sizes can be large.

Higher Compute Cost

Image models typically use more compute than text-only models.

Streaming Support

Emby can stream text; image parts arrive once the model finishes synthesis.

EU Hosting

All Emby-hosted vision models run inside EU data centers (bit.nl + Nebius AMS).
Need help integrating image generation? WhatsApp us: https://wa.absolum.nl
Book a call: https://cal.com/absolum/30min