Openverse API (Creative Commons Catalog)
Official vendor OpenAPI document · agent-readyMediaContent Deliverybearer (optional)17 EndpointsREST
For Agents
Search openly licensed images and audio and fetch individual items with their license and attribution. Retrieve related works, thumbnails, and oEmbed data, and register for a token to raise rate limits.
Use for: Search for openly licensed images of a subject, Find Creative Commons audio for a project, Get the license and attribution for a media item, Fetch works related to an image
Not supported: Does not handle media hosting, editing, or license purchasing. Use for searching openly licensed images and audio only.
The Openverse API searches openly licensed images and audio from across the web, returning each result with its license and attribution details. It fetches individual media items and related works, provides thumbnails and oEmbed data, reports catalog usage statistics, and lets applications register for a token that raises rate limits.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the Openverse API (Creative Commons Catalog) to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the Openverse API (Creative Commons Catalog), or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
1
Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fapi.openverse.org%2Fopenverse" | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fapi.openverse.org%2Fopenverse" | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with Openverse API (Creative Commons Catalog) API.
Search openly licensed images by keyword, license, and source
Search openly licensed audio with the same filters
Fetch a single image or audio item and its related works
Retrieve thumbnails and oEmbed data for a media item
Report a media item and read catalog usage statistics
Register for a token that raises rate limits
Use Cases
Patterns agents use Openverse API (Creative Commons Catalog) API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Openly Licensed Media Agent
An AI agent finds usable images or audio for a document or site by searching Openverse, filtering by license, and returning each item with the attribution it requires. Through Jentic the agent discovers the search and detail operations by intent and calls them directly, so it sources compliant media without a person browsing the catalog.
Search for openly licensed images of a mountain and return each result with its license and attribution
License and Attribution Lookup
Given a media identifier, fetch the item to read its exact license and the attribution string that must accompany it. This lets an agent confirm reuse terms before an asset is published, keeping downstream use within the license.
Fetch an image by identifier and return the license and required attribution text
Media Discovery and Thumbnails
Build a browse experience by searching the catalog, fetching related works, and pulling thumbnails or oEmbed data for previews. The agent can assemble a gallery of candidate assets without hosting or resizing media itself.
Search for audio on a theme and fetch thumbnails and related works for the top results
Key Endpoints
17 endpoints — the openverse api searches openly licensed images and audio from across the web, returning each result with its license and attribution details.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
GET
/images
Search openly licensed images
GET
/images/{identifier}
Get an image with license details
GET
/audio
Search openly licensed audio
GET
/images/stats
Get image catalog statistics
POST
/images/{identifier}/report
Report an image
GET
/images
Search openly licensed images
GET
/images/{identifier}
Get an image with license details
GET
/audio
Search openly licensed audio
GET
/images/stats
Get image catalog statistics
POST
/images/{identifier}/report
Report an image
Why Jentic?
What agents get from Jentic-routed access to this vendor.
Setup
Openverse needs no credential for most calls, so you can start searching right away. Through Jentic you install once, import Openverse from the API Directory, and add an optional bearer token when you want higher rate limits.
Permission scoping
Openverse is a read-focused catalog, so a rule bounds which operations your agent may call. You can allow only search and retrieval and leave the report operation out unless you add it.
Credential isolation
Most Openverse endpoints need no credential. When you supply an optional bearer token for higher rate limits, your own Jentic One instance stores it encrypted and injects it at execution time, so it never enters the agent's prompt or logs.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'search openly licensed images' or 'get a media license', and Jentic returns the matching Openverse operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using Openverse API (Creative Commons Catalog) API through Jentic.
What authentication does the Openverse API use?
Most Openverse endpoints need no credential; search and retrieval are public. An optional bearer token, registered through the auth-token endpoints, raises your rate limits. Through Jentic that token is stored encrypted by your own Jentic One instance and injected at call time.
Can I search for Creative Commons images with the Openverse API?
Yes. Call GET /images with a query and license filters to search openly licensed images, then GET /images/{identifier} to read a single item with its license and attribution. GET /audio does the same for audio.
What are the rate limits for the Openverse API?
Anonymous access has lower rate limits than authenticated access. Register for a token to raise them, and check the Openverse documentation at https://api.openverse.org for current thresholds before running large search jobs.
Is there an Openverse MCP server?
You don't need an MCP server to give your agent the Openverse API. Jentic connects it directly from the API Directory: import it, add an optional token, and your agent calls the search and detail operations it needs.
Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Openverse API?
Yes. Openverse is a read-focused catalog, so write a rule that allows only the search and retrieval operations and leaves the report operation out unless you add it, and every call the agent makes is logged.
How do I search Openverse media through Jentic?
Search Jentic for 'search openly licensed images', and it returns the GET /images and GET /audio operations with their input schemas so your agent runs the search directly. To run it on your own infrastructure, install Jentic One from its GitHub repo.
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