OpenAI Python SDK v2.34.0 adds Admin API key support and auth improvements

OpenAI released v2.34.0 of its Python SDK on May 4, 2026, bringing expanded authentication capabilities and bug fixes. The release is published on the official openai-python GitHub repository, the authoritative source for the library's development.

New authentication features enable per-endpoint Admin API key support and add support for setting HTTP headers via environment variables, improving deployment flexibility for applications that require fine-grained credential scoping. The SDK now handles bearer-free admin authentication, reducing reliance on default fallback mechanisms.

The release addresses seven authentication and type-handling bugs. Fixes include proper preservation of Python API key attribute types, resolution of Azure-specific auth header validation, and corrections to timestamp field types (from float to int) in response models. Stream helper functions now enforce bearer token authentication requirements explicitly.

Additional updates add external_key_id support to project objects and email/metadata parameters to user endpoints, expanding the SDK's coverage of the Admin API surface. Documentation improvements clarify rate limits and vector store information for file creation endpoints. The release also includes a performance optimization for multipart file uploads that reduces memory overhead during file structure copying.