Troubleshooting OpenAI Timeout Errors with Clay's API Key

Jacob T. · 2025-10-20 18:08:46.563754+00

I'm having a lot of openai timeout errors, any idea why? Even with Clay's OpenAI api key

Troubleshooting OpenAI Timeout Errors with Clay's API Key | Clay

11 comments

· Sorted by Oldest

Clay Support
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Frequent OpenAI timeout errors, even when using our OpenAI API key, are often caused by hitting rate limits or having an API key on a lower usage tier. For reliable performance, especially with features like Claygent, your OpenAI API key should be at least Tier 2 (≥450,000 tokens per minute for web research). Free or Tier 1 keys are insufficient for high-volume workflows and can result in timeouts.
To resolve this:
Check your OpenAI API usage tier and limits in your OpenAI dashboard.
Upgrade your API key to a higher tier if needed.
Monitor your usage and break large requests into smaller batches if possible.
You can find more details and upgrade instructions in your OpenAI account settings and documentation:
OpenAI Usage Tiers
OpenAI Usage Limits
How to Move Up in Usage Tiers [1]
Clay Support
APP
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Is that what you were looking for?
Clay Support
APP
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If you still need help resolving the OpenAI timeout errors, I’m here to assist. Would you like to provide more details about your setup or the specific issues you’re encountering?
Jacob T.
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https://app.clay.com/workspaces/555790/workbooks/wb_0t2tllrfTKtxR6cJyzU/tables/t_0t2tllrjp882usEzdwk/views/gv_0t0fd2sdmRH2GoVGav4 please have human help
Clay Support
APP
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I understand your frustration, and I’m connecting you to a human agent who can assist you further.
Intercom
APP
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Clay Support is sharing a file with you.
Our support team has got your message and we'll get back to you soon!
If you’re dealing with a specific table, drop the URL below so we can help you quicker. Otherwise, someone from our team will be in touch soon!
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Jacob T.
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Is this AWS related?
Andrew Q.
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Hi Jacob!
Earlier today, AWS experienced an incident in the US-EAST-1 region that caused increased errors and latency across multiple services. AWS has since applied mitigations and is reporting significant signs of recovery, though some requests may still be processing as they work through a backlog. https://health.aws.amazon.com/health/status. Based on the time you reached out, it’s highly likely the issue you experienced was related to this incident. Things should now be operational on our side, however, we will continue to monitor these issues as AWS has not marked the incident as resolved.
It's possible that the AI column will run later if it doesn't error out again. If you’re still seeing any problems later today, just reply to this message and we’ll be happy to help.
Jacob T.
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Awesome, thank you!
1
Andreas W.
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same here thx for looking into it
Clay Support
APP
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·
We haven't heard back from you here, so we're going to go ahead and close this thread out.
Still need help here? Reply back and someone will jump back in.
Have a question thats not related to this thread? We recommend kicking off a new ticket in the support channel!

Clay Support
APP
·
·
Frequent OpenAI timeout errors, even when using our OpenAI API key, are often caused by hitting rate limits or having an API key on a lower usage tier. For reliable performance, especially with features like Claygent, your OpenAI API key should be at least Tier 2 (≥450,000 tokens per minute for web research). Free or Tier 1 keys are insufficient for high-volume workflows and can result in timeouts.
To resolve this:
Check your OpenAI API usage tier and limits in your OpenAI dashboard.
Upgrade your API key to a higher tier if needed.
Monitor your usage and break large requests into smaller batches if possible.
You can find more details and upgrade instructions in your OpenAI account settings and documentation:
OpenAI Usage Tiers
OpenAI Usage Limits
How to Move Up in Usage Tiers [1]
Clay Support
APP
·
·
Is that what you were looking for?
Clay Support
APP
·
·
If you still need help resolving the OpenAI timeout errors, I’m here to assist. Would you like to provide more details about your setup or the specific issues you’re encountering?
Jacob T.
·
·
https://app.clay.com/workspaces/555790/workbooks/wb_0t2tllrfTKtxR6cJyzU/tables/t_0t2tllrjp882usEzdwk/views/gv_0t0fd2sdmRH2GoVGav4 please have human help
Clay Support
APP
·
·
I understand your frustration, and I’m connecting you to a human agent who can assist you further.
Intercom
APP
·
·
Clay Support is sharing a file with you.
Our support team has got your message and we'll get back to you soon!
If you’re dealing with a specific table, drop the URL below so we can help you quicker. Otherwise, someone from our team will be in touch soon!
Loading attachments
Jacob T.
·
·
Is this AWS related?
Andrew Q.
·
·
Hi Jacob!
Earlier today, AWS experienced an incident in the US-EAST-1 region that caused increased errors and latency across multiple services. AWS has since applied mitigations and is reporting significant signs of recovery, though some requests may still be processing as they work through a backlog. https://health.aws.amazon.com/health/status. Based on the time you reached out, it’s highly likely the issue you experienced was related to this incident. Things should now be operational on our side, however, we will continue to monitor these issues as AWS has not marked the incident as resolved.
It's possible that the AI column will run later if it doesn't error out again. If you’re still seeing any problems later today, just reply to this message and we’ll be happy to help.
Jacob T.
·
·
Awesome, thank you!
1
Andreas W.
·
·
same here thx for looking into it
Clay Support
APP
·
·
We haven't heard back from you here, so we're going to go ahead and close this thread out.
Still need help here? Reply back and someone will jump back in.
Have a question thats not related to this thread? We recommend kicking off a new ticket in the support channel!