api-integrator

name	api-integrator
description	Learn and integrate new APIs, creating permanent skills for external service access.
category	autonomous

API Integrator

Important: Instruction Template This skill provides instructions for Claude Code to follow when integrating APIs. There is no automatic credential encryption - you must implement your own secure storage mechanism. Never store credentials in plaintext in files that will be committed.

Goal

Transform API access credentials into permanent, reusable integration skills.

When to Use

• User provides a new API key
• Need to connect to an external service
• Building automation that requires API access
• Extending agent capabilities with new tools

Process

Step 1: Receive Credentials

When user provides API access:

"Here's my [Service] API key: xxx"

1. Acknowledge receipt (never echo the key)
2. Store securely in designated location
3. Confirm storage without exposing value

Step 2: Learn the API

1. Fetch Documentation

   • Request docs URL if not provided
   • Read API reference
   • Identify authentication method

2. Understand Capabilities

   • List available endpoints
   • Note rate limits
   • Identify common use cases

3. Map to User Needs

   • What will the user likely want to do?
   • What are the most valuable operations?

Step 3: Build Integration

1. Test Authentication

   • Make a simple API call
   • Verify credentials work
   • Handle auth errors gracefully

2. Implement Core Operations

   • Start with most common use cases
   • Build reusable patterns
   • Add error handling

3. Validate End-to-End

   • Test each operation
   • Verify output formats
   • Check edge cases

Step 4: Create Skill

Save as skills/<service>-api/SKILL.md:

---
name: service-api
description: Integration with [Service] for [capabilities].
env:
  - SERVICE_API_KEY
---

# [Service] API Integration

## Goal
[What this integration enables]

## Capabilities
- [Capability 1]
- [Capability 2]
- [Capability 3]

## Authentication
- Type: [API Key / OAuth / etc.]
- Header: [Where key goes]

## Operations

### [Operation 1]
**Endpoint:** `GET /endpoint`
**Purpose:** [What it does]
**Example:** [How to use]

### [Operation 2]
...

## Rate Limits
- [Limit details]
- [Retry strategy]

## Error Handling
- [Common errors]
- [How to handle]

Step 5: Announce Integration

"I've integrated with [Service]! 🎉

I can now:
• [Capability 1]
• [Capability 2]
• [Capability 3]

This is permanently saved. Try asking me to [example task]."

Integration Templates

REST API Template

---
name: rest-service-api
description: REST API integration template
env:
  - API_KEY
---

# REST Service Integration

## Authentication

Headers: { "Authorization": "Bearer ${API_KEY}" }

## Base URL
`https://api.service.com/v1`

## Operations

### List Items

GET /items Response: { items: [...] }

### Create Item

POST /items Body: { name, description } Response: { id, name, description }

### Get Item

GET /items/{id} Response: { id, name, description }

Webhook Integration Template

---
name: webhook-service
description: Webhook-based service integration
---

# Webhook Integration

## Receiving Webhooks
- Endpoint: `/webhooks/service`
- Verification: [How to verify]
- Events: [List of events]

## Event Handlers

### on_event_type

Payload: { ... } Action: [What to do]

Common Integrations

Communication APIs

• Twilio: SMS, voice calls, WhatsApp
• SendGrid: Email sending
• Slack: Messaging, notifications
• Discord: Bot messages, webhooks

Productivity APIs

• Google Calendar: Events, scheduling
• Notion: Pages, databases
• Todoist: Tasks, projects
• Linear: Issues, projects

Development APIs

• GitHub: Repos, PRs, issues
• Vercel: Deployments
• Cloudflare: DNS, workers

AI/ML APIs

• OpenAI: GPT, embeddings, DALL-E
• Anthropic: Claude models
• ElevenLabs: Voice synthesis
• Replicate: Model hosting

Security Guidelines

Do

• Store credentials encrypted
• Use environment variables
• Implement rate limiting
• Log API usage (not secrets)

Don't

• Echo API keys in responses
• Store credentials in code
• Ignore rate limits
• Make unnecessary API calls

Credential Storage

Store in ~/.agent/credentials/:

credentials/
├── github.enc
├── openai.enc
└── slack.enc

Access pattern:

1. Check if credential exists
2. Load and decrypt
3. Use for API call
4. Never log or display

Error Handling Patterns

Rate Limiting

if response.status == 429:
    wait_time = response.headers['Retry-After']
    sleep(wait_time)
    retry()

Authentication Failure

if response.status == 401:
    notify_user("API key may be invalid or expired")
    suggest_reconfiguration()

Service Unavailable

if response.status >= 500:
    retry_with_backoff(max_retries=3)
    if still_failing:
        notify_user("Service temporarily unavailable")

References

• See skill-creator for skill creation patterns
• See memory-manager for logging integrations
• See AUTONOMOUS_BOOTUP_SPEC.md for architecture