Text Summarization API Specification & Integration Reference

POST Text Summarization API

/api/v1/ai/text-summarize

Condense long-form text, articles, or transcripts into configurable summaries and optionally extract structured data.

Base Billing 1 Credit
Typical Response 1-3 s
Client Timeout 15-30 s (recommended)
Provider Fallback Automatic
JSON Contract Envelope v1

Architecture Role & AI Definition

Text Summarization API provides low-latency, deterministic REST execution for production engineering workflows. It processes structured payloads with strict schema validation, returns uniform JSON envelopes, and is secured via SHA-256 API key authentication with atomic credit pre-authorization locks.

Production Reliability Guidelines

1. Strict Timeout Windows

Configure a hard client timeout of 5 to 8 seconds. If network latency spikes, cancel connection to avoid holding open sockets in worker pools.

2. Exponential Backoff with Jitter

Upon receiving 429 Rate Limit or transient 5xx, pause with exponential backoff:
wait = min(max_backoff, base * 2^attempt + jitter).

3. Atomic Pre-Auth Locks

RSFlowHub acquires an atomic lock verifying base credits before model invocation. If validation fails, zero credits are deducted.

Request Body Parameters

Field Type Required Description
text string Required The raw text content to summarize (Max: 25,000 characters).
length string Optional Desired summary length: "short", "medium", or "long". Default is "short".
format string Optional Output format: "paragraph", "bullet_points", or "key_takeaways". Default is "paragraph".
target_audience string Optional Adjust the reading level and tone (e.g., "general", "expert", "5_year_old").
extract_schema object Optional Optional schema definition (JSON object) of exact data points you want extracted from the text. Example: {"company_name":"string", "revenue":"number"}
custom_instructions string Optional Optional specific rules to guide the summarization or extraction process.
model string Optional Optional AI model to use.

Example Request (Summarize & Extract)

This endpoint allows you to instantly summarize long texts while safely extracting data simultaneously. The credit cost calculates automatically based on input length.

JSON Request
{
  "text": "Acme Corp announced Q3 earnings today of $14.2 Million, representing a 22% increase year over year. The CEO, Jane Doe, stated that the new software division was the primary driver of growth. They plan to hire 200 new engineers next quarter.",
  "length": "short",
  "format": "bullet_points",
  "extract_schema": {
    "company_name": "string",
    "q3_earnings_millions": "number",
    "ceo_name": "string",
    "planned_hires": "integer"
  }
}
curl-trigger.sh cURL
curl -X POST https://rsflowhub.com/api/v1/ai/text-summarize \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "text": "Acme Corp announced Q3 earnings today of $14.2 Million, representing a 22% increase year over year. The CEO, Jane Doe, stated that the new software division was the primary driver of growth. They plan to hire 200 new engineers next quarter.",
    "length": "short",
    "format": "bullet_points",
    "extract_schema": {
      "company_name": "string",
      "q3_earnings_millions": "number",
      "ceo_name": "string",
      "planned_hires": "integer"
    }
  }'

Example Response

The API outputs the requested summary formatting alongside your strictly-typed extracted data.

response.json JSON Response
200 OK
{
  "success": true,
  "request_id": "req_7f3a9c2d1e4b8a6f",
  "data": {
    "result": {
      "summary": [
        "Acme Corp Q3 earnings reached $14.2 Million (up 22%).",
        "Growth driven by the new software division.",
        "Plan to hire 200 new engineers."
      ],
      "original_length": 234,
      "summary_length": 139,
      "extracted_data": {
        "company_name": "Acme Corp",
        "q3_earnings_millions": 14.2,
        "ceo_name": "Jane Doe",
        "planned_hires": 200
      }
    }
  },
  "meta": {
    "version": "v1",
    "timestamp": "2026-09-27T12:34:56+00:00"
  }
}

API Request Example

Use the cURL snippet below to test the endpoint.

curl-trigger.sh cURL
curl -X POST 'https://rsflowhub.com/api/v1/ai/text-summarize' \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "text": "Acme Corp announced Q3 earnings...",
    "format": "bullet_points",
    "extract_schema": {
        "company_name": "string"
    }
}'

Want to try it without code? Test this request in the live Playground.


Common Failure Modes & Troubleshooting Matrix

HTTP Code Error Code Root Cause Recommended Remediation
400 bad_request Malformed JSON syntax or missing required top-level parameters. Validate JSON payload with Content-Type: application/json and ensure all required fields are present.
401 unauthorized Missing, revoked, or incorrectly formatted x-api-key header. Verify API key exists in Dashboard → API Keys and pass in x-api-key or Authorization: Bearer.
402 insufficient_credits Account credit balance is lower than the base required credits (1 credits). Top up credits in billing settings or enable auto-recharge to prevent pipeline interruption.
422 validation_error Input failed parameter constraints (e.g., character length exceeded or invalid array types). Review parameters table above and adjust payload length, types, or structure accordingly.
429 rate_limit_exceeded Concurrency limit (60 requests/minute default) reached for this endpoint key. Back off and retry using the timestamp in Retry-After response header, or batch requests.

Technical Q&A (FAQ)

Each Text Summarization API call costs 1 base credit, plus about 1 credit per 1,000 input characters and 1 credit per 500 output characters. Failed calls are not charged.

The text field accepts up to 25,000 characters per request. Larger inputs return a 422 validation error, so split long content into chunks.

Text Summarization API runs on Google Gemini (gemini-2.5-flash), with automatic fallback to OpenAI (gpt-4.1-mini) if the primary provider fails or rate-limits. Models are tuned per task, so your integration does not change when we upgrade them.

Yes. Identical requests within 24 hours are answered from cache, which is faster and free or discounted in credits.

Most requests complete in 1 to 3 seconds; set a client timeout of 15 to 30 seconds to cover long inputs. On HTTP 429, wait for the Retry-After delay. Retry network errors once or twice with exponential backoff and jitter.

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