diff --git a/libs/langchain/langchain/chains/moderation.py b/libs/langchain/langchain/chains/moderation.py
index 9467b8894c12b..f72cae6cc8d7d 100644
--- a/libs/langchain/langchain/chains/moderation.py
+++ b/libs/langchain/langchain/chains/moderation.py
@@ -67,8 +67,8 @@ def validate_environment(cls, values: Dict) -> Any:
             if values["openai_pre_1_0"]:
                 values["client"] = openai.Moderation
             else:
-                values["client"] = openai.OpenAI()
-                values["async_client"] = openai.AsyncOpenAI()
+                values["client"] = openai.OpenAI(api_key=openai_api_key)
+                values["async_client"] = openai.AsyncOpenAI(api_key=openai_api_key)
 
         except ImportError:
             raise ImportError(