| name | cost-optimizer |
| description | Use when auditing platform costs, optimizing AI token usage, or reviewing cloud infrastructure expenses. Covers model selection rules and AWS cost cleanup patterns for Rocha family systems. |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| author | Hermes Agent |
| license | MIT |
| metadata | {"hermes":{"tags":["home-assistant","rocha-family","cost","cloud","aws","optimization","platform"],"related_skills":["platform-manager","finance-manager","hermes-cron-schedule"]}} |
Cost Optimizer Skill
Overview
Two-layer cost management: (1) platform AI token costs via model selection, and (2) cloud infrastructure waste via AWS audits. Runs automatically on schedule but can be triggered on-demand.
When to Use
- Reviewing token spend patterns
- Auditing AWS resources for waste
- Recommending model downgrades to cheaper tiers
- Weekly infrastructure cost check-in
Layer 1: Platform Token Optimization
Model Selection Hierarchy
| Use Case | Preferred Model | Fallback |
|---|
| Simple task nudges, status checks | claude-haiku-4.5 | — |
| Standard agents, briefings | claude-sonnet-4.6 | haiku |
| Complex reasoning, medical, NICU | claude-sonnet-4.6 | never downgrade |
| Code generation, PR review | claude-sonnet-4.6 | — |
Auto-Downgrade Rules
When token analysis shows a cron job consistently using <20% of model capacity:
- Flag for haiku override
- Add override to cron config (never touch original)
- Report to Hector: model, job, estimated savings
Protected Agents — NEVER downgrade:
nicu-care — baby health is non-negotiablewellness-coach — postpartum medical contexthealth-coach — medical decisionsfinance-manager — money decisions- Any agent where wrong output = real-world harm
Layer 2: AWS Infrastructure Audit
Run weekly (Monday 8:35 AM):
Audit Checklist
EC2: Stopped instances >7 days → flag for termination
EBS: Unattached volumes >7 days → snapshot + delete
EIPs: Unassociated Elastic IPs → release (cost: ~$3.60/mo each)
RDS: Dev/staging instances running nights/weekends → schedule stop
S3: Buckets with versioning on but no lifecycle policy → add 30-day cleanup
Lambda: Functions with 0 invocations in 30 days → flag for review
Auto-Actions (no approval needed):
- Release unassociated EIPs
- Add lifecycle policies to S3 buckets
- Tag untagged resources with
owner: hermes-audit
Escalate to Hector (approval required):
- Terminate any EC2 instance
- Delete any RDS instance or snapshot
- Changes to security groups or IAM
Reporting Format
☁️ Cloud Cost Audit — [Date]
💰 Current monthly: ~$XX
🔴 Waste found: $XX/mo (X items)
• [Item]: $X/mo — [action taken or recommended]
✅ Auto-cleaned: $X/mo
📋 Action needed: [items requiring approval]
Common Pitfalls
- ❌ Downgrading NICU/medical/finance agents for cost savings — never
- ❌ Terminating instances without approval
- ❌ Acting on stale data (always pull fresh usage before recommending)
- ❌ Over-reporting — only surface items with $5+/mo impact
Verification Checklist
