---
name: retellai-install-auth
description: |
  Retell AI install auth — AI voice agent and phone call automation.
  Use when working with Retell AI for voice agents, phone calls, or telephony.
  Trigger with phrases like "retell install auth", "retellai-install-auth", "voice agent".
allowed-tools: Read, Write, Edit, Bash(npm:*), Bash(curl:*), Grep
version: 2.0.0
license: MIT
author: Jeremy Longshore <jeremy@intentsolutions.io>
tags: [saas, retellai, voice, telephony, ai-agents]
compatible-with: claude-code, codex, openclaw
---

# Retell AI Install Auth

## Overview
Install the Retell AI SDK and configure API key authentication for building voice agents.

## Prerequisites
- Retell AI account at retellai.com
- API key from the Retell AI dashboard
- Node.js 18+ or Python 3.9+

## Instructions

### Step 1: Install SDK
```bash
set -euo pipefail
# Node.js
npm install retell-sdk

# Python
pip install retell-sdk
```

### Step 2: Configure Environment
```bash
# .env
RETELL_API_KEY=key_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
```

### Step 3: Initialize Client (Node.js)
```typescript
import Retell from 'retell-sdk';

const retell = new Retell({ apiKey: process.env.RETELL_API_KEY! });

// Verify connection — list agents
const agents = await retell.agent.list();
console.log(`Connected! ${agents.length} agent(s) configured.`);
```

### Step 4: Initialize Client (Python)
```python
from retell import Retell
import os

retell = Retell(api_key=os.environ["RETELL_API_KEY"])
agents = retell.agent.list()
print(f"Connected! {len(agents)} agent(s) configured.")
```

## Output
- `retell-sdk` installed
- API key configured
- Connection verified with agent listing

## Error Handling
| Error | Cause | Solution |
|-------|-------|----------|
| `401 Unauthorized` | Invalid API key | Verify key in Retell Dashboard |
| `ModuleNotFoundError` | SDK not installed | `npm install retell-sdk` |
| Connection timeout | Network issue | Check firewall allows HTTPS |

## Resources
- [Retell AI SDKs](https://docs.retellai.com/get-started/sdk)
- [retell-sdk npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/retell-sdk)

## Next Steps
Create your first agent: `retellai-hello-world`