add-llm-api-provider

name	add-llm-api-provider
description	Add a new LLM API provider to inference.sh grid with native SDK, streaming, shared helper, deploy, test, and pricing. Use when creating a batch of LLM model apps from a provider like Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, xAI.
allowed-tools	Bash, Read, Write, Edit, Glob, Grep, Agent, WebFetch

Add LLM API Provider

Use when adding a new LLM provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, xAI, etc.) to the inference.sh grid as a set of chat apps with a shared helper module.

Process

1. Research the provider API — Fetch official documentation. For each model, extract:

   • Model ID (exact API string, e.g. claude-sonnet-4-6)
   • Context window and max output tokens
   • Pricing per million tokens (input/output)
   • Capabilities: vision, tool use, reasoning/thinking, streaming format
   • Auth method and header format
   • Collect into README.md and pricing.md at the provider root

2. Create provider directory and shared helper —

   mkdir -p tmp/grid/api/{provider}
   

   Write {provider}_helper.py with:

   • Message conversion: Provider-specific format from LLMInput (context messages, images, tool calls, tool results). Handle consecutive same-role message merging if required.
   • Tool conversion: OpenAI format → provider format
   • Streaming function: stream_completion(client, input_data, model) → yields output dicts with response, reasoning, tool_calls, output_meta
   • Non-streaming function: complete(client, input_data, model) → returns output dict
   • Token tracking: Extract input_tokens/output_tokens from API response, emit as OutputMeta(inputs=[TextMeta(tokens=N)], outputs=[TextMeta(tokens=N)])
   • Error handling: handle_api_error() that extracts provider error messages
   • Reasoning/thinking config: Map ReasoningEffortEnum to provider's thinking parameter format

3. Scaffold each model app — Use belt app init, never create files manually:

   cd tmp/grid/api/{provider}
   belt app init {model-name} --lang python   # repeat for each model
   

4. Symlink the shared helper into each app:

   for app in model-a model-b model-c; do
     ln -sf ../{provider}_helper.py "$app/{provider}_helper.py"
   done
   

5. Implement each app's inference.py — Thin wrapper (~50 lines):

   • AppInput extends LLMInput + capability mixins (ReasoningCapabilityMixin, ToolsCapabilityMixin, ImageCapabilityMixin)
   • AppOutput extends ReasoningMixin, ToolCallsMixin, LLMOutput, BaseAppOutput
   • App.setup() — no parameters, init the SDK client from os.getenv("{PROVIDER}_KEY")
   • App.run() — delegates to stream_completion() or complete() based on input_data.stream
   • Set DEFAULT_MODEL, context_size, and max_tokens per model

6. Update inf.yml for each app — Set:

   • namespace: {provider}, name: {model-name}
   • category: chat
   • metadata.capabilities: [reasoning, image] (as appropriate)
   • secrets: [{key: {PROVIDER}_KEY}]
   • resources: gpu: {count: 0, type: none}, ram: 0 (API-only)

7. Update requirements.txt for each app:

   pydantic >= 2.0.0
   inferencesh >= 0.6.30
   {provider-sdk} >= {version}
   

8. Deploy all apps:

   for app in model-a model-b model-c; do
     cd tmp/grid/api/{provider}/$app && belt app deploy
   done
   

9. Cloud-test every app — Not just one, ALL of them:

   belt app run {provider}/{model-name} --json --input '{"text": "simple test prompt"}'
   

   Verify: status_text: "completed", non-empty response, output_meta with token counts.

10. Run pricing agents for all apps — Get app/version IDs, then run:

    belt app get {provider}/{model-name} --json  # extract app.id and app.version_id
    belt agent run infsh/pricing-agent "<pricing instructions>" \
      --context version_id=<vid> --context app_id=<aid>
    

    Group by pricing tier (e.g. all $5/$25 models together). After agents draft and evaluate, approve publish:

    belt chat pending                    # list pending approvals
    belt chat approve <invocation-id>    # approve each publish
    

Rules

• NEVER create inf.yml, inference.py, init.py, or app directories manually. Always use belt app init. The scaffolded __init__.py and package structure are required for the validator. Reason: manual creation misses required fields, uses wrong field names, and breaks the deployment validator.

• setup() takes no parameters. The metadata parameter is deprecated. Use self.context.metadata if needed. self.logger is NOT available in setup() — use print() for setup logging. Reason: both caused runtime errors during testing.

• LLMInput field is text, not prompt. The input schema inherits from LLMInput which uses text as the primary field. Reason: prompt causes a Pydantic validation error at runtime.

• AppOutput MUST extend BaseAppOutput (not just BaseModel) when using output_meta. Without it, output_meta is silently dropped from the response.

• Read files before overwriting with Write tool. The Write tool requires a prior Read of the file in the same conversation. After belt app init, read the scaffolded file first.

• Use relative imports for the symlinked helper. from .{provider}_helper import func — not absolute imports. The app runs as a package inside the deployment container.

• Deploy and cloud-test EVERY app, not just one. Different model IDs can have different API behaviors. A working sonnet doesn't guarantee a working haiku. Reason: we shipped with only partial testing initially.

• Run pricing agents AFTER deployment, not before. The pricing agent needs the app submitted to the store, which happens during deploy. If the agent says "not submitted to store", tell it to submit first.

• belt secrets are masked locally. belt secrets get doesn't return the raw value — you can't use it for local testing env vars. Deploy and cloud-test instead.

• Pricing CEL expressions need double() casts. text_tokens() returns int; dividing by a double causes a CEL type error. Always use . Reason: multiple pricing agents failed on this before self-correcting.