Cheap AI token gateways need route-scoped limits

Cheap AI token access is usually sold as a simple price story: one API key, lower model prices, and access to more providers. That is useful, but it is not enough once a product starts routing real traffic. The missing control is route-scoped limits. A route is not just a technical detail. It decides which provider handles a request, which upstream model is called, whether a backup channel can take over, and which balance bucket pays. If every request only has one global spend limit, a cheap…