diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 955c225..b9dd263 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ OLLAMA_API_KEY=your-ollama-cloud-key-here
 # Built-in provider keys (each optional; only needed for the providers you use).
 #OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...
 #KIMI_API_KEY=sk-...           # Moonshot AI (Kimi); provider name "kimi"
+#QWEN_API_KEY=sk-...           # Alibaba Model Studio (Qwen); provider name "qwen"
 #ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...
 #GOOGLE_API_KEY=...
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 0ecaf6b..9e5324c 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -122,6 +122,7 @@ Chains are health-tracked per target:
 |----------|-----------|-------------|------------------|
 | OpenAI (+compatible) | `openai` | `OPENAI_API_KEY` | https://api.openai.com/v1 |
 | Kimi (Moonshot AI) | `kimi` | `KIMI_API_KEY` | https://api.moonshot.ai/v1 |
+| Qwen (Alibaba) | `qwen` | `QWEN_API_KEY` | https://dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1 |
 | Anthropic (+compatible) | `anthropic` | `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` | https://api.anthropic.com |
 | Google (Gemini) | `google` | `GOOGLE_API_KEY` / `GEMINI_API_KEY` | Gemini API (official SDK) |
 | Ollama Cloud | `ollama-cloud` | `OLLAMA_API_KEY` | https://ollama.com |
@@ -134,6 +135,19 @@ the openai client (like llama-swap). The `kimi` built-in defaults to the
 international endpoint; reach the China endpoint (or any other host) with a
 `kimi://` DSN, e.g. `LLM_KCN=kimi://token@api.moonshot.cn/v1`.
 
+Qwen is the same shape: Alibaba Model Studio's OpenAI-compatible mode, reusing
+the openai client. The `qwen` built-in defaults to the international
+(Singapore) host; reach the China host or a workspace-scoped regional one with
+a `qwen://` DSN, e.g.
+`LLM_QCN=qwen://token@dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1`. Model Studio
+also fronts the same models with an Anthropic-compatible `/v1/messages` shim —
+majordomo does **not** use it, because on that surface `reasoning_effort` is
+dropped, `Request.Schema` stops being enforced, and cached-token accounting
+disappears; see [ADR-0027](docs/adr/0027-qwen-builtin.md). Two Alibaba-side
+quirks are worth knowing: thinking is on by default for some models (e.g.
+`qwen3.7-plus`), and the Qwen3 open-source models require streaming while
+thinking, so buffered `Generate` calls want a Max/Plus model.
+
 OpenAI-compatible / Anthropic-compatible endpoints: construct the provider
 with a name and base URL and register it —
 
@@ -165,7 +179,7 @@ m, _ := reg.Parse("m5/qwen3:30b,m1/qwen3:30b,thinking")
 ```
 
 DSN format: `scheme://[token@]host[/path]`, scheme ∈ `foreman`, `ollama`,
-`ollama-cloud`, `openai`, `kimi`, `anthropic`, `google`/`gemini`, `llama-swap`,
+`ollama-cloud`, `openai`, `kimi`, `qwen`, `anthropic`, `google`/`gemini`, `llama-swap`,
 `llama-swaps`, or any scheme you add with `RegisterScheme`. The token is the
 credential (bearer token / API key); the base URL is always `https://host[/path]`
 — except `llama-swap`, which builds `http://host[:port]` since it's local-first
@@ -420,6 +434,7 @@ to build one.
 |----------------------|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|
 | OpenAI (+compatible) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
 | Kimi (Moonshot AI) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅³ | ✅ |
+| Qwen (Alibaba) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅⁴ | ✅⁴ | ✅ |
 | Anthropic (+compat) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
 | Google (Gemini) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
 | Ollama Cloud | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
@@ -444,6 +459,13 @@ probe and management methods on `*llamaswap.Provider`.
 level; whether a call succeeds depends on the Moonshot model — only the vision
 variants (e.g. `moonshot-v1-8k-vision-preview`) accept images.
 
+⁴ Qwen also reuses the openai client (ADR-0027), so both columns are present at
+the client level and gated by the Model Studio model you name: `json_schema`
+structured output is on the Max/Plus families, image inputs on the `qwen-vl-*`
+/ `qwen3-vl-*` models. `reasoning_effort` rides through as a top-level field —
+one reason the built-in speaks OpenAI-compat rather than Model Studio's
+Anthropic-compat shim.
+
 Notes: Ollama has no native tool_choice — `"none"` drops the tools;
 `"required"`/named choices are best-effort ignored there. Ollama Cloud
 ignores the `format` field (verified live), so the provider also states
diff --git a/builtin.go b/builtin.go
index 1b39c05..b0301b1 100644
--- a/builtin.go
+++ b/builtin.go
@@ -2,7 +2,6 @@ package majordomo
 
 import (
 	"net/http"
-	"strings"
 
 	"gitea.stevedudenhoeffer.com/steve/majordomo/llm"
 	"gitea.stevedudenhoeffer.com/steve/majordomo/provider/anthropic"
@@ -18,7 +17,13 @@ const (
 	// ProviderKimi is Moonshot AI's Kimi models over their OpenAI-compatible
 	// Chat Completions endpoint. Reuses the openai client (like llama-swap);
 	// keyed by KIMI_API_KEY, default base URL kimiBaseURL.
-	ProviderKimi        = "kimi"
+	ProviderKimi = "kimi"
+	// ProviderQwen is Alibaba's Qwen models over Model Studio's
+	// OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions endpoint. Reuses the openai client
+	// (like kimi and llama-swap); keyed by QWEN_API_KEY, default base URL
+	// qwenBaseURL. ADR-0027 records why the OpenAI surface and not the
+	// Anthropic-compatible one Model Studio also exposes.
+	ProviderQwen        = "qwen"
 	ProviderAnthropic   = "anthropic"
 	ProviderGoogle      = "google"
 	ProviderOllama      = "ollama"
@@ -37,6 +42,55 @@ const (
 // China endpoint (api.moonshot.cn/v1) is reachable via a kimi:// LLM_* DSN.
 const kimiBaseURL = "https://api.moonshot.ai/v1"
 
+// qwenBaseURL is Alibaba Model Studio's international (Singapore) endpoint in
+// OpenAI-compatible mode. The China endpoint
+// (dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1) and any regional host are
+// reachable via a qwen:// LLM_* DSN.
+const qwenBaseURL = "https://dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1"
+
+// openaiCompatScheme builds the DSN factory shared by every built-in that is
+// "the openai client pointed somewhere else" (kimi, qwen, ...). The provider
+// is named after the LLM_<NAME> var that defined it, takes its credential from
+// the DSN token — not the built-in's own env var, which does nothing for a
+// DSN-defined provider — and so names that same LLM_<NAME> var in the
+// missing-key hint, matching the lazy-resolution key form in providerFor.
+//
+// wrap is the caller's option-decorator (it injects the registry's HTTP
+// client), so a DSN provider is built exactly like the eager built-ins.
+func openaiCompatScheme(wrap func(...openai.Option) []openai.Option) SchemeFactory {
+	return func(name string, dsn DSN) (llm.Provider, error) {
+		return openai.New(wrap(
+			openai.WithName(name),
+			openai.WithBaseURL(dsn.BaseURL()),
+			openai.WithAPIKey(dsn.Token),
+			openai.WithAPIKeyName(envKeyForProvider(name)),
+		)...), nil
+	}
+}
+
+// registerOpenAICompatBuiltin installs BOTH halves of an OpenAI-compat
+// built-in: the eager provider under name (credential from keyEnv) and the
+// matching name:// DSN scheme. Why both in one call: the two halves are a pair
+// — a built-in whose scheme is missing resolves as a spec but not from an
+// LLM_* DSN, and the credential rules below have to hold identically in each.
+// Adding the next one is a single line rather than six lines to copy.
+//
+// The two credential rules, holding by construction for every caller:
+//   - WithAPIKey is passed UNCONDITIONALLY, even when the lookup comes back
+//     empty. openai.New defaults its key to OPENAI_API_KEY, so anything less
+//     lets an unset keyEnv silently authenticate as OpenAI.
+//   - WithAPIKeyName makes the synthetic-401 hint name keyEnv, so a keyless
+//     call tells the operator the variable that actually fixes it.
+func registerOpenAICompatBuiltin(r *Registry, wrap func(...openai.Option) []openai.Option, name, baseURL, keyEnv string) {
+	r.providers[name] = openai.New(wrap(
+		openai.WithName(name),
+		openai.WithBaseURL(baseURL),
+		openai.WithAPIKey(r.envLookup(keyEnv)),
+		openai.WithAPIKeyName(keyEnv),
+	)...)
+	r.schemes[name] = openaiCompatScheme(wrap)
+}
+
 // registerBuiltins installs the built-in providers and env-DSN scheme
 // factories into a fresh registry. httpClient, when non-nil, is used by
 // every provider and factory the registry itself constructs.
@@ -83,32 +137,19 @@ func registerBuiltins(r *Registry, httpClient *http.Client) {
 		)...), nil
 	}
 
-	// Kimi (Moonshot AI): OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions, so it reuses the
-	// openai client (like llama-swap). Defaults to Moonshot's international
-	// endpoint and the KIMI_API_KEY credential. WithAPIKey is passed
-	// unconditionally — even empty — so an unset KIMI_API_KEY can never fall
-	// through to the openai client's OPENAI_API_KEY default; WithAPIKeyName
-	// makes the missing-key error name KIMI_API_KEY.
-	r.providers[ProviderKimi] = openai.New(openaiOpts(
-		openai.WithName(ProviderKimi),
-		openai.WithBaseURL(kimiBaseURL),
-		openai.WithAPIKey(r.envLookup("KIMI_API_KEY")),
-		openai.WithAPIKeyName("KIMI_API_KEY"),
-	)...)
-	// kimi:// DSN scheme: an OpenAI-compatible target labeled kimi, base URL
-	// from the DSN host (e.g. kimi://tok@api.moonshot.cn/v1 for China). Its
-	// credential is the DSN token, not KIMI_API_KEY, so the missing-key hint
-	// names the LLM_<NAME> env var that defines this provider (matching the
-	// lazy-resolution key form in providerFor) — the fix for a keyless target
-	// here is adding a token to that DSN.
-	r.schemes[ProviderKimi] = func(name string, dsn DSN) (llm.Provider, error) {
-		return openai.New(openaiOpts(
-			openai.WithName(name),
-			openai.WithBaseURL(dsn.BaseURL()),
-			openai.WithAPIKey(dsn.Token),
-			openai.WithAPIKeyName("LLM_"+strings.ToUpper(strings.ReplaceAll(name, "-", "_"))),
-		)...), nil
-	}
+	// Third-party endpoints that ARE the openai client at another base URL —
+	// no new package, mirroring llama-swap's chat path. Each gets the eager
+	// built-in plus its name:// DSN scheme, and the credential rules hold by
+	// construction (see registerOpenAICompatBuiltin).
+	//
+	// kimi (ADR-0026): Moonshot's international endpoint; China host via
+	// kimi://tok@api.moonshot.cn/v1.
+	registerOpenAICompatBuiltin(r, openaiOpts, ProviderKimi, kimiBaseURL, "KIMI_API_KEY")
+	// qwen (ADR-0027): Alibaba Model Studio's international host. Model Studio
+	// also exposes an Anthropic-compatible endpoint; the ADR records why the
+	// OpenAI one is the built-in. China / workspace-scoped regional hosts via
+	// qwen://tok@dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1.
+	registerOpenAICompatBuiltin(r, openaiOpts, ProviderQwen, qwenBaseURL, "QWEN_API_KEY")
 
 	// llama-swap: OpenAI-compatible chat + image generation + management
 	// endpoints over a model-swapping proxy. Chat reuses the openai client
diff --git a/builtin_kimi_test.go b/builtin_kimi_test.go
deleted file mode 100644
index 7140ba0..0000000
--- a/builtin_kimi_test.go
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,171 +0,0 @@
-package majordomo
-
-import (
-	"context"
-	"errors"
-	"io"
-	"net/http"
-	"strings"
-	"testing"
-
-	"gitea.stevedudenhoeffer.com/steve/majordomo/llm"
-)
-
-// kimiResponse is a minimal valid Chat Completions body so Generate returns a
-// non-empty response (an empty one would trigger failover, not a clean pass).
-const kimiResponse = `{"id":"c1","object":"chat.completion","choices":[` +
-	`{"index":0,"message":{"role":"assistant","content":"ok"},"finish_reason":"stop"}]}`
-
-// captureRT records the last request and returns a canned response without
-// touching the network, so these tests stay hermetic while still exercising
-// the real openai client the kimi built-in reuses (base URL + auth header).
-type captureRT struct {
-	req  *http.Request
-	body string
-}
-
-func (c *captureRT) RoundTrip(r *http.Request) (*http.Response, error) {
-	c.req = r
-	return &http.Response{
-		StatusCode: http.StatusOK,
-		Body:       io.NopCloser(strings.NewReader(c.body)),
-		Header:     make(http.Header),
-		Request:    r,
-	}, nil
-}
-
-// TestKimiBuiltin: the built-in "kimi" provider resolves in Parse, targets
-// Moonshot's default endpoint, and authenticates with KIMI_API_KEY.
-func TestKimiBuiltin(t *testing.T) {
-	rt := &captureRT{body: kimiResponse}
-	r := newTestRegistry(t,
-		WithEnvLookup(func(k string) string {
-			if k == "KIMI_API_KEY" {
-				return "kimi-secret"
-			}
-			return ""
-		}),
-		WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}),
-	)
-
-	if p, ok := r.Provider(ProviderKimi); !ok {
-		t.Fatal("built-in kimi provider not registered")
-	} else if p.Name() != ProviderKimi {
-		t.Errorf("name = %q, want %q", p.Name(), ProviderKimi)
-	}
-
-	m, err := r.Parse("kimi/kimi-k2-0711-preview")
-	if err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
-	}
-	if got := targetsOf(t, m); len(got) != 1 || got[0] != "kimi/kimi-k2-0711-preview" {
-		t.Fatalf("targets = %v", got)
-	}
-
-	if _, err := m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}}); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("Generate: %v", err)
-	}
-	if rt.req == nil {
-		t.Fatal("no request captured")
-	}
-	if want := "https://api.moonshot.ai/v1/chat/completions"; rt.req.URL.String() != want {
-		t.Errorf("URL = %q, want %q", rt.req.URL.String(), want)
-	}
-	if want := "Bearer kimi-secret"; rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization") != want {
-		t.Errorf("Authorization = %q, want %q", rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization"), want)
-	}
-}
-
-// TestKimiBuiltinMissingKey: with no KIMI_API_KEY the built-in fails fast with a
-// synthetic 401 whose hint names KIMI_API_KEY — never OPENAI_API_KEY (proving
-// the credential does not fall through to the openai client's default), and
-// without hitting the network.
-func TestKimiBuiltinMissingKey(t *testing.T) {
-	rt := &captureRT{body: kimiResponse}
-	r := newTestRegistry(t, WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}))
-
-	m, err := r.Parse("kimi/kimi-k2-0711-preview")
-	if err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
-	}
-	_, err = m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}})
-	apiErr, ok := errors.AsType[*llm.APIError](err)
-	if !ok {
-		t.Fatalf("err = %v (%T), want *llm.APIError", err, err)
-	}
-	if apiErr.Status != http.StatusUnauthorized || apiErr.Code != "missing_api_key" {
-		t.Errorf("Status/Code = %d/%q, want 401/missing_api_key", apiErr.Status, apiErr.Code)
-	}
-	if !strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, "KIMI_API_KEY") {
-		t.Errorf("message = %q, want it to name KIMI_API_KEY", apiErr.Message)
-	}
-	if strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, "OPENAI_API_KEY") {
-		t.Errorf("message = %q, must not name OPENAI_API_KEY", apiErr.Message)
-	}
-	if rt.req != nil {
-		t.Error("network was hit despite missing key")
-	}
-}
-
-// TestKimiScheme: a kimi:// LLM_* DSN defines a named provider on any Moonshot
-// host (here the China endpoint) that is first-class in Parse and carries the
-// DSN token as its bearer credential.
-func TestKimiScheme(t *testing.T) {
-	rt := &captureRT{body: kimiResponse}
-	r := newTestRegistry(t, WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}))
-	if err := r.LoadEnv(map[string]string{
-		"LLM_KCN": "kimi://tok@api.moonshot.cn/v1",
-	}); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("LoadEnv: %v", err)
-	}
-
-	m, err := r.Parse("kcn/moonshot-v1-8k")
-	if err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
-	}
-	if _, err := m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}}); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("Generate: %v", err)
-	}
-	if rt.req == nil {
-		t.Fatal("no request captured")
-	}
-	if want := "https://api.moonshot.cn/v1/chat/completions"; rt.req.URL.String() != want {
-		t.Errorf("URL = %q, want %q", rt.req.URL.String(), want)
-	}
-	if want := "Bearer tok"; rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization") != want {
-		t.Errorf("Authorization = %q, want %q", rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization"), want)
-	}
-}
-
-// TestKimiSchemeMissingToken: a kimi:// DSN with no token is fixed by adding one
-// to the DSN, not by setting KIMI_API_KEY — so the missing-key hint names the
-// defining LLM_<NAME> env var, never KIMI_API_KEY (which does nothing for a
-// DSN-defined provider).
-func TestKimiSchemeMissingToken(t *testing.T) {
-	rt := &captureRT{body: kimiResponse}
-	r := newTestRegistry(t, WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}))
-	if err := r.LoadEnv(map[string]string{
-		"LLM_KCN": "kimi://api.moonshot.cn/v1", // no token
-	}); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("LoadEnv: %v", err)
-	}
-
-	m, err := r.Parse("kcn/moonshot-v1-8k")
-	if err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
-	}
-	_, err = m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}})
-	apiErr, ok := errors.AsType[*llm.APIError](err)
-	if !ok {
-		t.Fatalf("err = %v (%T), want *llm.APIError", err, err)
-	}
-	if !strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, "LLM_KCN") {
-		t.Errorf("message = %q, want it to name LLM_KCN", apiErr.Message)
-	}
-	if strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, "KIMI_API_KEY") {
-		t.Errorf("message = %q, must not name KIMI_API_KEY for a DSN provider", apiErr.Message)
-	}
-	if rt.req != nil {
-		t.Error("network was hit despite missing token")
-	}
-}
diff --git a/builtin_openaicompat_test.go b/builtin_openaicompat_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1290e2e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/builtin_openaicompat_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,240 @@
+package majordomo
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"gitea.stevedudenhoeffer.com/steve/majordomo/llm"
+)
+
+// Shared fixtures and the shared contract for the built-ins that are "the
+// openai client pointed somewhere else" (kimi, qwen, ...). They live here
+// rather than in any one provider's test file so a new OpenAI-compat built-in
+// has nothing to copy — the same reason registerOpenAICompatBuiltin exists on
+// the production side.
+
+// chatCompletionOK is a minimal valid Chat Completions body, so Generate
+// returns a non-empty response (an empty one would trigger failover, not a
+// clean pass).
+const chatCompletionOK = `{"id":"c1","object":"chat.completion","choices":[` +
+	`{"index":0,"message":{"role":"assistant","content":"ok"},"finish_reason":"stop"}]}`
+
+// captureRT records the last request (and the bytes of its body) and returns a
+// canned response without touching the network, so these tests stay hermetic
+// while still exercising the real openai client the built-ins reuse: base URL,
+// auth header, and the JSON actually put on the wire.
+type captureRT struct {
+	req     *http.Request
+	reqBody []byte
+	body    string
+}
+
+func (c *captureRT) RoundTrip(r *http.Request) (*http.Response, error) {
+	c.req = r
+	// Drain and close the request body: a RoundTripper owns it, and those
+	// bytes are what wire-shape assertions read.
+	c.reqBody = nil
+	if r.Body != nil {
+		c.reqBody, _ = io.ReadAll(r.Body)
+		_ = r.Body.Close()
+	}
+	return &http.Response{
+		StatusCode: http.StatusOK,
+		Body:       io.NopCloser(strings.NewReader(c.body)),
+		Header:     make(http.Header),
+		Request:    r,
+	}, nil
+}
+
+// singleKeyEnv builds a WithEnvLookup function that knows exactly one variable
+// and returns "" for everything else. The empty default has teeth: a built-in
+// that reached for any other variable name gets nothing, so the request 401s
+// and the test fails rather than quietly authenticating off the wrong key.
+func singleKeyEnv(key, value string) func(string) string {
+	return func(k string) string {
+		if k == key {
+			return value
+		}
+		return ""
+	}
+}
+
+// openAICompatBuiltin describes one built-in for the shared contract below.
+// Adding an OpenAI-compat built-in means adding a row here — not copying a
+// test file, which is how kimi's and qwen's suites became near-identical.
+type openAICompatBuiltin struct {
+	name    string // registry name and spec prefix
+	keyEnv  string // the credential variable this built-in reads
+	model   string // a current model id for that endpoint
+	wantURL string // chat-completions URL the default endpoint must produce
+
+	// The name:// DSN case: an alternate host (regional/China endpoint)
+	// reached through an LLM_<dsnVar> definition.
+	dsnVar     string
+	dsnHost    string
+	wantDSNURL string
+}
+
+var openAICompatBuiltins = []openAICompatBuiltin{
+	{
+		name:       ProviderKimi,
+		keyEnv:     "KIMI_API_KEY",
+		model:      "kimi-k2-0711-preview",
+		wantURL:    "https://api.moonshot.ai/v1/chat/completions",
+		dsnVar:     "LLM_KCN",
+		dsnHost:    "api.moonshot.cn/v1",
+		wantDSNURL: "https://api.moonshot.cn/v1/chat/completions",
+	},
+	{
+		name:       ProviderQwen,
+		keyEnv:     "QWEN_API_KEY",
+		model:      "qwen3.8-max",
+		wantURL:    "https://dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1/chat/completions",
+		dsnVar:     "LLM_QCN",
+		dsnHost:    "dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1",
+		wantDSNURL: "https://dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1/chat/completions",
+	},
+}
+
+// TestOpenAICompatBuiltins is the whole contract an OpenAI-compat built-in
+// owes, asserted identically for every one of them: it resolves in Parse and
+// targets its own endpoint with its own key; a missing key fails closed naming
+// the right variable and never reaching the network; its name:// DSN reaches
+// any other host on the DSN token; and a keyless DSN names the LLM_<NAME> that
+// actually fixes it rather than the built-in's variable, which does nothing
+// for a DSN-defined provider.
+func TestOpenAICompatBuiltins(t *testing.T) {
+	for _, tc := range openAICompatBuiltins {
+		t.Run(tc.name+"/builtin", func(t *testing.T) {
+			rt := &captureRT{body: chatCompletionOK}
+			secret := tc.name + "-secret"
+			r := newTestRegistry(t,
+				WithEnvLookup(singleKeyEnv(tc.keyEnv, secret)),
+				WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}),
+			)
+
+			if p, ok := r.Provider(tc.name); !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("built-in %q not registered", tc.name)
+			} else if p.Name() != tc.name {
+				t.Errorf("name = %q, want %q", p.Name(), tc.name)
+			}
+
+			spec := tc.name + "/" + tc.model
+			m, err := r.Parse(spec)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Parse(%q): %v", spec, err)
+			}
+			if got := targetsOf(t, m); len(got) != 1 || got[0] != spec {
+				t.Fatalf("targets = %v, want [%q]", got, spec)
+			}
+
+			if _, err := m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}}); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Generate: %v", err)
+			}
+			if rt.req == nil {
+				t.Fatal("no request captured")
+			}
+			if rt.req.URL.String() != tc.wantURL {
+				t.Errorf("URL = %q, want %q", rt.req.URL.String(), tc.wantURL)
+			}
+			if want := "Bearer " + secret; rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization") != want {
+				t.Errorf("Authorization = %q, want %q", rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization"), want)
+			}
+		})
+
+		t.Run(tc.name+"/builtin missing key", func(t *testing.T) {
+			rt := &captureRT{body: chatCompletionOK}
+			r := newTestRegistry(t, WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}))
+
+			m, err := r.Parse(tc.name + "/" + tc.model)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
+			}
+			_, err = m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}})
+			apiErr, ok := errors.AsType[*llm.APIError](err)
+			if !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("err = %v (%T), want *llm.APIError", err, err)
+			}
+			if apiErr.Status != http.StatusUnauthorized || apiErr.Code != "missing_api_key" {
+				t.Errorf("Status/Code = %d/%q, want 401/missing_api_key", apiErr.Status, apiErr.Code)
+			}
+			if !strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, tc.keyEnv) {
+				t.Errorf("message = %q, want it to name %s", apiErr.Message, tc.keyEnv)
+			}
+			// The load-bearing half: openai.New defaults its key to
+			// OPENAI_API_KEY, so a built-in that stopped passing WithAPIKey
+			// unconditionally would authenticate as OpenAI instead of failing.
+			if strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, "OPENAI_API_KEY") {
+				t.Errorf("message = %q, must not name OPENAI_API_KEY", apiErr.Message)
+			}
+			if rt.req != nil {
+				t.Error("network was hit despite missing key")
+			}
+		})
+
+		t.Run(tc.name+"/dsn scheme", func(t *testing.T) {
+			rt := &captureRT{body: chatCompletionOK}
+			r := newTestRegistry(t, WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}))
+			if err := r.LoadEnv(map[string]string{
+				tc.dsnVar: tc.name + "://tok@" + tc.dsnHost,
+			}); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("LoadEnv: %v", err)
+			}
+
+			dsnName := strings.ToLower(strings.TrimPrefix(tc.dsnVar, "LLM_"))
+			m, err := r.Parse(dsnName + "/" + tc.model)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
+			}
+			if _, err := m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}}); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Generate: %v", err)
+			}
+			if rt.req == nil {
+				t.Fatal("no request captured")
+			}
+			if rt.req.URL.String() != tc.wantDSNURL {
+				t.Errorf("URL = %q, want %q", rt.req.URL.String(), tc.wantDSNURL)
+			}
+			if want := "Bearer tok"; rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization") != want {
+				t.Errorf("Authorization = %q, want %q", rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization"), want)
+			}
+		})
+
+		t.Run(tc.name+"/dsn scheme missing token", func(t *testing.T) {
+			rt := &captureRT{body: chatCompletionOK}
+			r := newTestRegistry(t, WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}))
+			if err := r.LoadEnv(map[string]string{
+				tc.dsnVar: tc.name + "://" + tc.dsnHost, // no token
+			}); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("LoadEnv: %v", err)
+			}
+
+			dsnName := strings.ToLower(strings.TrimPrefix(tc.dsnVar, "LLM_"))
+			m, err := r.Parse(dsnName + "/" + tc.model)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
+			}
+			_, err = m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}})
+			apiErr, ok := errors.AsType[*llm.APIError](err)
+			if !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("err = %v (%T), want *llm.APIError", err, err)
+			}
+			// A keyless DSN is fixed by adding a token to that DSN, so the
+			// hint must name the defining variable — never the built-in's own
+			// key, which does nothing for a DSN-defined provider.
+			if !strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, tc.dsnVar) {
+				t.Errorf("message = %q, want it to name %s", apiErr.Message, tc.dsnVar)
+			}
+			if strings.Contains(apiErr.Message, tc.keyEnv) {
+				t.Errorf("message = %q, must not name %s for a DSN provider", apiErr.Message, tc.keyEnv)
+			}
+			if rt.req != nil {
+				t.Error("network was hit despite missing token")
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/builtin_qwen_test.go b/builtin_qwen_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0419e30
--- /dev/null
+++ b/builtin_qwen_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+package majordomo
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"net/http"
+	"testing"
+
+	"gitea.stevedudenhoeffer.com/steve/majordomo/llm"
+)
+
+// The contract qwen shares with every other OpenAI-compat built-in (endpoint,
+// credential isolation, its qwen:// DSN) is asserted by the table in
+// builtin_openaicompat_test.go. What remains here is qwen-specific: the
+// reverse-leak direction, and the wire claim ADR-0027 turns on.
+
+// TestQwenBuiltinKeyDoesNotLeakToOpenAI: QWEN_API_KEY is the qwen built-in's
+// credential and nothing else's. Why this direction too: the shared table's
+// missing-key case only proves qwen never borrows OPENAI_API_KEY; this proves
+// the reverse — a registry that can see QWEN_API_KEY must not hand it to the
+// openai built-in, which would send an Alibaba key to api.openai.com.
+func TestQwenBuiltinKeyDoesNotLeakToOpenAI(t *testing.T) {
+	// Set before newTestRegistry: the openai built-in reads OPENAI_API_KEY at
+	// construction. Giving it a real key is what keeps this test honest — a
+	// keyless openai target would 401 before any request, and the assertion
+	// below would pass without a single byte reaching the wire.
+	t.Setenv("OPENAI_API_KEY", "openai-secret")
+
+	rt := &captureRT{body: chatCompletionOK}
+	r := newTestRegistry(t,
+		WithEnvLookup(singleKeyEnv("QWEN_API_KEY", "qwen-secret")),
+		WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}),
+	)
+
+	m, err := r.Parse("openai/gpt-4o-mini")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, err := m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{Messages: []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")}}); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Generate: %v", err)
+	}
+	if rt.req == nil {
+		t.Fatal("no request captured")
+	}
+	if want := "Bearer openai-secret"; rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization") != want {
+		t.Errorf("Authorization = %q, want %q — the qwen credential must not reach the openai built-in",
+			rt.req.Header.Get("Authorization"), want)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestQwenReasoningEffortReachesWire is the load-bearing test for ADR-0027's
+// central claim: Model Studio's OpenAI-compatible surface takes reasoning as a
+// top-level "reasoning_effort" body field, which the openai client already
+// sends — so llm.WithReasoningEffort survives the trip on qwen with no
+// qwen-specific code. Routing qwen through the anthropic client instead would
+// drop it silently (provider/anthropic ignores ReasoningEffort by design), and
+// that difference would be invisible without asserting on the wire body.
+func TestQwenReasoningEffortReachesWire(t *testing.T) {
+	rt := &captureRT{body: chatCompletionOK}
+	r := newTestRegistry(t,
+		WithEnvLookup(singleKeyEnv("QWEN_API_KEY", "qwen-secret")),
+		WithHTTPClient(&http.Client{Transport: rt}),
+	)
+
+	m, err := r.Parse("qwen/qwen3.8-max")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Parse: %v", err)
+	}
+	_, err = m.Generate(context.Background(), llm.Request{
+		Messages:        []llm.Message{llm.UserText("hi")},
+		ReasoningEffort: "high",
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Generate: %v", err)
+	}
+	if rt.reqBody == nil {
+		t.Fatal("no request body captured")
+	}
+	var sent map[string]any
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rt.reqBody, &sent); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decode request body: %v", err)
+	}
+	if got := sent["reasoning_effort"]; got != "high" {
+		t.Errorf("reasoning_effort = %v, want %q (body: %s)", got, "high", rt.reqBody)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/docs/adr/0027-qwen-builtin.md b/docs/adr/0027-qwen-builtin.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3a495d0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/adr/0027-qwen-builtin.md
@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+# ADR-0027: Qwen (Alibaba) built-in provider — OpenAI-compat, not Anthropic-compat
+
+**Status:** Accepted — 2026-08-12
+
+## Context
+
+Alibaba's Qwen models (`qwen3.8-max`, `qwen3.7-plus`, the `qwen3-vl-*` vision
+variants, …) are served from Model Studio / DashScope, and mort wants them as a
+first-class failover tier with a dedicated `QWEN_API_KEY` — the same ergonomics
+ADR-0026 gave Kimi.
+
+Unlike Kimi, Model Studio exposes the same models over **two** protocols:
+
+| | OpenAI-compatible | Anthropic-compatible |
+|---|---|---|
+| Base URL | `https://dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1` | `https://dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/apps/anthropic` |
+| Endpoints | full Chat Completions surface | `/v1/messages` only (no `/v1/models`) |
+| Purpose | the documented developer API | a shim, documented around hosting Claude Code |
+
+So the question this ADR answers is not "which client do we reuse" but
+"which of Alibaba's two wire protocols does the built-in speak".
+
+## Decision
+
+**The `qwen` built-in and the `qwen://` DSN scheme speak OpenAI-compat**, over
+`provider/openai` — no new package, mirroring ADR-0026 (kimi) and ADR-0015
+(llama-swap chat). Default base URL is the international host; the China host
+(`dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1`) and workspace-scoped regional
+hosts are reachable with a `qwen://` DSN.
+
+Credential handling is copied from kimi verbatim, because both of its rules
+are load-bearing: `WithAPIKey` is passed unconditionally (even empty) so an
+unset `QWEN_API_KEY` can never fall through to `openai.New`'s `OPENAI_API_KEY`
+default, and `WithAPIKeyName("QWEN_API_KEY")` makes the synthetic-401 hint name
+the variable the operator actually has to set.
+
+The kimi and qwen DSN factories were identical, so they now share one
+`openaiCompatScheme` helper — the next OpenAI-compat built-in gets the
+credential and key-hint rules by construction rather than by copy.
+
+### Why not the Anthropic-compatible endpoint
+
+Every concrete difference favors OpenAI-compat *for this codebase*:
+
+- **Reasoning survives the trip.** Model Studio takes `reasoning_effort` as a
+  top-level field on the OpenAI surface, which `provider/openai` already sends
+  — `llm.WithReasoningEffort` works on qwen with zero qwen-specific code
+  (`TestQwenReasoningEffortReachesWire` asserts it on the wire). Down the
+  anthropic client it would be dropped in silence: `provider/anthropic`
+  deliberately ignores `Request.ReasoningEffort`, because first-party Claude
+  has no such knob.
+- **Structured output would regress.** `provider/anthropic` implements
+  `Request.Schema` with the first-party GA `output_config.format` mechanism.
+  Alibaba's shim does not implement it; a compat endpoint that ignores an
+  unknown field returns unconstrained prose while still reporting success.
+  The OpenAI path sends `response_format: json_schema`, which Model Studio
+  supports natively on the Max/Plus families.
+- **Cache accounting already lands.** Model Studio's implicit prefix cache
+  reports hits in `usage.prompt_tokens_details.cached_tokens`, which the openai
+  client already maps to `llm.Usage.CacheReadTokens`. The anthropic client
+  reads `cache_read_input_tokens`, a field the shim has no reason to emit.
+- **Thinking content is discarded on the anthropic path anyway.**
+  `provider/anthropic` skips `thinking` blocks in both the buffered and
+  streaming decoders, so the shim's headline feature — first-class
+  `thinking: {type: "enabled", budget_tokens: N}` — buys majordomo nothing
+  today.
+- **Smaller blast radius.** The anthropic client has no `WithAPIKeyName`
+  option, so a keyless qwen would tell the operator to set `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`;
+  fixing that means changing the first-party Anthropic client to serve a
+  third-party shim.
+- **It is the less-exercised surface.** The Anthropic endpoint is documented as
+  Messages-only, with a temperature range that differs from Anthropic's own
+  ([0, 2) vs [0.0, 1.0]) — i.e. it is Qwen semantics wearing an Anthropic
+  envelope, not an Anthropic-equivalent target.
+
+The one thing the Anthropic surface offers that OpenAI-compat does not is
+explicit `cache_control` breakpoints reached through `Request.PromptCache`.
+That is not a reason to route Qwen through it: Model Studio's implicit cache is
+automatic and already metered, and if explicit breakpoints ever matter they
+belong in `provider/openai` (Model Studio accepts `cache_control` on content
+blocks there too), where every OpenAI-compat target would get them.
+
+## Consequences
+
+- `qwen/<model>` is first-class in Parse, chains, aliases, and health/failover
+  with no consumer wiring; model ids pass through verbatim (no catalog).
+- Chat, streaming, tools, structured output, reasoning effort, and cached-token
+  accounting all ride the openai client and inherit its fixes.
+- Image *inputs* work at the client level, but only the `qwen-vl-*` /
+  `qwen3-vl-*` models accept them (matrix footnote ⁴; ³ is kimi's).
+- Two model-side quirks are Alibaba's, not majordomo's, and are left to the
+  caller rather than papered over: thinking is **on by default** on some models
+  (e.g. `qwen3.7-plus`), and Qwen3 *open-source* models require streaming when
+  thinking is enabled — a buffered `Generate` against one of those needs a
+  model that supports non-streaming thinking (the Max/Plus families do).
+- If a future consumer genuinely needs the Anthropic surface, it is reachable
+  today without library changes:
+  `LLM_QWEN_ANTHROPIC=anthropic://token@dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/apps/anthropic`
+  — with the reasoning/structured-output caveats above.
+- Second third-party built-in after kimi. The ADR-0026 bar still holds: a named
+  consumer needs it in-config. `RegisterProvider`/`LLM_*` remain the path for
+  everything else.
diff --git a/docs/adr/README.md b/docs/adr/README.md
index b75b582..5965921 100644
--- a/docs/adr/README.md
+++ b/docs/adr/README.md
@@ -30,3 +30,4 @@ One decision per file, append-only; supersede rather than rewrite.
 | [0024](0024-audio-wave3-surfaces.md) | Wave-3 audio surfaces (stems, SFX, speech enhance, voice clone, translate) | Accepted |
 | [0025](0025-videogen-wave3-surfaces.md) | Wave-3 video surfaces (lipsync, video matte, video upscale, chain jobs) | Accepted |
 | [0026](0026-kimi-builtin.md) | Kimi (Moonshot AI) built-in provider — reuse openai client, KIMI_API_KEY | Accepted |
+| [0027](0027-qwen-builtin.md) | Qwen (Alibaba) built-in provider — OpenAI-compat, not Model Studio's Anthropic-compat endpoint | Accepted |
diff --git a/env.go b/env.go
index bf7d9a8..20c274b 100644
--- a/env.go
+++ b/env.go
@@ -26,8 +26,9 @@ var ErrUnknownProvider = errors.New("unknown provider")
 // authenticated with the bearer token "test-token".
 type DSN struct {
 	// Scheme selects the provider implementation: "foreman", "ollama",
-	// "ollama-cloud", "openai", "kimi", "anthropic", "google"/"gemini", or
-	// any custom scheme registered with RegisterScheme.
+	// "ollama-cloud", "openai", "kimi", "qwen", "anthropic",
+	// "google"/"gemini", "llama-swap"/"llama-swaps", or any custom scheme
+	// registered with RegisterScheme.
 	Scheme string
 	// Token is the provider secret (bearer token or API key); empty = none.
 	Token string
@@ -40,6 +41,19 @@ type DSN struct {
 // env-defined providers always speak TLS).
 func (d DSN) BaseURL() string { return "https://" + d.Host }
 
+// envKeyForProvider returns the LLM_* variable that defines the provider named
+// name: "m1" → LLM_M1, "my-prov" → LLM_MY_PROV.
+//
+// This is the single definition on purpose. Two call sites need byte-identical
+// output and would drift apart in silence: lazy resolution reads this variable
+// to find an unregistered provider, and openaiCompatScheme names it in the
+// missing-key hint so a keyless DSN target tells the operator which variable to
+// set. Those two were separate copies with a comment asserting they matched —
+// a comment is not enforcement, this function is.
+func envKeyForProvider(name string) string {
+	return "LLM_" + strings.ToUpper(strings.ReplaceAll(name, "-", "_"))
+}
+
 // ParseDSN parses a raw DSN string. The algorithm matches go-llm exactly:
 // split on "://", then an optional "@" separates the token from the host;
 // trailing slashes on the host are trimmed.
diff --git a/progress.md b/progress.md
index 300080d..e69f874 100644
--- a/progress.md
+++ b/progress.md
@@ -285,3 +285,39 @@ tests flush out.
   (footnote ³), `.env.example`, ADR-0026 (+ index; also backfilled the missing
   0024/0025 index rows).
 - Consumer: mort names Kimi as a failover tier.
+
+## 2026-08-12 — Qwen (Alibaba) built-in provider (ADR-0027)
+
+- New built-in `qwen` provider + `qwen://` DSN scheme over Alibaba Model
+  Studio's OpenAI-compatible mode, reusing `provider/openai` (no new client,
+  mirrors kimi/llama-swap). Default base URL
+  `https://dashscope-intl.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1`; China/regional
+  hosts via `LLM_QCN=qwen://token@dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1`.
+- Credential is `QWEN_API_KEY` (via the registry's injected envLookup).
+  `WithAPIKey` passed unconditionally so an unset key cannot fall through to
+  `OPENAI_API_KEY`; `WithAPIKeyName` names `QWEN_API_KEY` in the 401 hint.
+- **Chose OpenAI-compat over Model Studio's Anthropic-compatible
+  `/apps/anthropic` shim** (ADR-0027): on the anthropic client
+  `ReasoningEffort` is ignored by design, `Request.Schema` rides
+  `output_config.format` (which the shim does not implement), and cached-token
+  accounting reads Anthropic-only usage fields. The shim is still reachable
+  ad hoc via an `anthropic://` DSN.
+- `registerOpenAICompatBuiltin` installs BOTH halves of an OpenAI-compat
+  built-in (eager provider + `name://` DSN scheme via the shared
+  `openaiCompatScheme`), so the two credential rules — unconditional
+  `WithAPIKey`, and `WithAPIKeyName` naming that same variable — hold by
+  construction. kimi and qwen are one line each.
+- `envKeyForProvider` is the single definition of the `LLM_<NAME>` form,
+  shared by lazy resolution (`registry.go`) and the DSN missing-key hint. They
+  were separate copies with a comment asserting they matched.
+- The shared contract is ONE table (`builtin_openaicompat_test.go`), run
+  identically for every OpenAI-compat built-in: endpoint + bearer, missing key
+  fails closed naming its own variable with no network hit, the `name://` DSN
+  reaching another host, and a keyless DSN naming `LLM_<NAME>` rather than the
+  built-in's key. Adding a built-in is a table row that immediately owes all
+  four; `builtin_kimi_test.go` was retired into it. Qwen-only tests: the
+  reverse credential leak, and `reasoning_effort` asserted on the wire body
+  (the ADR's load-bearing claim).
+- Docs in sync: README built-in table + Qwen paragraph + DSN scheme list +
+  support matrix (footnote ⁴), `.env.example`, ADR-0027 (+ index).
+- Consumer: mort wants Qwen as a failover tier.
diff --git a/registry.go b/registry.go
index e657e2a..f5bd162 100644
--- a/registry.go
+++ b/registry.go
@@ -263,7 +263,7 @@ func (r *Registry) providerFor(name string) (llm.Provider, error) {
 		return nil, envErr
 	}
 
-	envKey := "LLM_" + strings.ToUpper(strings.ReplaceAll(name, "-", "_"))
+	envKey := envKeyForProvider(name)
 	envVal := r.envLookup(envKey)
 	if envVal == "" {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("%w: %q (checked registry and %s env var)", ErrUnknownProvider, name, envKey)