diff --git a/osbuild/api.py b/osbuild/api.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..098bed42
--- /dev/null
+++ b/osbuild/api.py
@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+import array
+import asyncio
+import json
+import os
+import tempfile
+import threading
+import sys
+
+
+from . import remoteloop
+
+
+class API:
+    def __init__(self, sock, args, interactive):
+        self.sock = sock
+        self.input = args
+        self.interactive = interactive
+        self._output = None
+        self.event_loop = asyncio.new_event_loop()
+        self.event_loop.add_reader(self.sock, self._dispatch)
+        self.thread = threading.Thread(target=self._run_event_loop)
+
+    @property
+    def output(self):
+        return self._output and self._output.read()
+
+    def _prepare_input(self):
+        with tempfile.TemporaryFile() as fd:
+            fd.write(json.dumps(self.input).encode('utf-8'))
+            # re-open the file to get a read-only file descriptor
+            return open(f"/proc/self/fd/{fd.fileno()}", "r")
+
+    def _prepare_output(self):
+        if self.interactive:
+            return os.fdopen(os.dup(sys.stdout.fileno()), 'w')
+        out = tempfile.TemporaryFile(mode="wb")
+        fd = os.open(f"/proc/self/fd/{out.fileno()}", os.O_RDONLY|os.O_CLOEXEC)
+        self._output = os.fdopen(fd)
+        return out
+
+    def _setup_stdio(self, addr):
+        with self._prepare_input() as stdin, \
+             self._prepare_output() as stdout:
+            msg = {}
+            fds = array.array("i")
+            fds.append(stdin.fileno())
+            msg['stdin'] = 0
+            fds.append(stdout.fileno())
+            msg['stdout'] = 1
+            fds.append(stdout.fileno())
+            msg['stderr'] = 2
+            remoteloop.dump_fds(self.sock, msg, fds, addr=addr)
+
+    def __del__(self):
+        self.sock.close()
+
+    def _dispatch(self):
+        msg, addr = self.sock.recvfrom(1024)
+        args = json.loads(msg)
+        if args["method"] == 'setup-stdio':
+            self._setup_stdio(addr)
+
+    def _run_event_loop(self):
+        # Set the thread-local event loop
+        asyncio.set_event_loop(self.event_loop)
+        # Run event loop until stopped
+        self.event_loop.run_forever()
+
+    def __enter__(self):
+        self.thread.start()
+        return self
+
+    def __exit__(self, *args):
+        self.event_loop.call_soon_threadsafe(self.event_loop.stop)
+        self.thread.join()