Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

OpenClaw fails to route requests through the OpenRouter provider and returns blank responses in the chat UI.

Steps to reproduce

1. Start with OpenClaw 2026.4.14 and use the attached config below.
2. Configure OpenClaw with OpenRouter as provider:

   "model": {
     "primary": "openrouter/google/gemini-2.5-flash"
   },
   "auth": {
     "profiles": {
       "openrouter:default": {
         "provider": "openrouter",
         "mode": "api_key"
       }
     }
   }

3. Set OPENROUTER_API_KEY env variable with a valid sk-or-v1-... key
4. Start gateway and send any message in chat
5. Observe: assistant row appears with model name but empty response

Expected behavior

OpenClaw routes the request through OpenRouter and returns the model's response in the chat UI.

Actual behavior

• Chat UI shows blank assistant message (model name visible, no content)
• No OpenRouter request appears in OpenRouter's activity dashboard
• openclaw doctor reports no issues
• openclaw status --all shows gateway healthy and reachable

OpenClaw version

2026.4.14

Operating system

macOS and Ubuntu

Install method

npm global

Model

openrouter/google/gemini-2.5-flash

Provider / routing chain

openclaw -> openrouter -> gemini-2.5-flash

Additional provider/model setup details

No response

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

Impact and severity

Affected: Openrouter users
Severity: High
Frequency: always
Consequence: No response from LLM

Additional information

No response