Collection of GPT-image-generator 2.0 issues, bugs, and work-around tips (check first post)
OpenAI Developer Community
April 26, 2026
The API is mainly for developers/builders. It lets you connect OpenAI models directly into your own apps, tools, scripts, or workflows instead of using them only through the ChatGPT interface.
So for normal prompting you don’t need it, but if you want to build something, automate tests or control model requests more directly, that’s where the API comes in.
Overview here: OpenAI API Platform Documentation
Discussion in the ATmosphere