sleepy
51123212c4
Harnesses under analysis: - opencode (Go-based coding agent) - pi (minimal terminal coding harness by Mario Zechner) - hermes (Nous Research agent) - forgecode (AI pair programmer with sub-agents) Each harness folder contains: - repo/: Source code from respective repositories - feedback/localllm/: Community feedback for local/smaller models - feedback/frontier/: Community feedback for frontier models Research focus: Tool handling, skills systems, prompt engineering, context management, and best practices for smaller/local models.
139 lines
3.3 KiB
Markdown
139 lines
3.3 KiB
Markdown
# Budget Providers Feedback (Kimi, DeepSeek, MiniMax)
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**Source reference:** Community guides, official integration docs, API documentation
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---
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## Kimi / Moonshot AI (K2.5)
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**Recommendation:** Primary budget-friendly option
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### Why Kimi K2.5?
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**Source:** https://hermes-agent.ai/blog/hermes-agent-api-keys
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> "For most users: Kimi K2.5 from Moonshot or MiniMax as a daily driver — both are fast, capable, and inexpensive. Use Claude Sonnet or GPT-4 only for complex reasoning tasks where the extra capability is worth the significantly higher per-token cost."
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### Caching Benefits
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| Provider | Cache Discount |
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|----------|----------------|
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| Kimi K2.5 | 75% off on cache hits |
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| DeepSeek | 90% off on cache hits |
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| Claude/Anthropic | Full price (no special discount) |
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### Cost Comparison
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**Feature implementation scenario (~100 API calls):**
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- Claude Sonnet 4.5: ~$34
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- Kimi K2.5: ~$3-8 (depending on caching)
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- DeepSeek (cache hits): Under $1
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---
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## DeepSeek
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**Best for:** Maximum cost savings with caching
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### Caching Advantage
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**Source:** https://hermes-agent.ai/blog/hermes-agent-token-overhead
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> "DeepSeek (90% off on cache) — Biggest cost lever"
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### Use Cases
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- Routine file organization
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- Simple message responses
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- Cron job executions
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- Research lookups
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---
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## MiniMax
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**Integration:** Official partnership/support
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**Source:** https://platform.minimax.io/docs/token-plan/hermes-agent
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> "Use MiniMax-M2.7 in Hermes Agent for autonomous AI-powered development."
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### Token Plan
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- Different from pay-as-you-go API keys
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- Subscribe to Token Plan first
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- Create Token Plan API Key from the Token Plan page
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---
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## Other Budget Options
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### Z.AI / ZhipuAI (GLM Models)
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- Good for Chinese language tasks
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- Competitive pricing
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- OpenAI-compatible endpoint
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### Alibaba Cloud DashScope
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- Qwen model access
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- Regional availability advantages
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### OpenCode Zen / Go
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- Curated model access
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- Budget-friendly options
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---
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## Provider Selection Strategy
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### Tier 1: Daily Driver (High Volume, Lower Cost)
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- **Kimi K2.5** - 75% cache discount, good capabilities
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- **DeepSeek** - 90% cache discount, cheapest option
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- **MiniMax** - Fast, capable, inexpensive
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### Tier 2: Complex Tasks (Selective Use)
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- **Claude Sonnet** - Best reasoning, highest cost
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- **GPT-4** - Good for specific use cases
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### Tier 3: Auxiliary Tasks
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- **Gemini Flash** - Vision tasks, cheap
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- **Local models** - Free but require hardware
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---
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## Configuration Example
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```yaml
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# config.yaml for cost optimization
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model:
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default: "moonshot/kimi-k2.5" # Daily driver
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auxiliary:
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vision:
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provider: "openrouter"
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model: "google/gemini-2.5-flash" # Cheap vision
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```
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---
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## Community Experience
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**Positive feedback on budget providers:**
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- "Fast, capable, and inexpensive"
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- Significant cost savings vs frontier models
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- Good enough for 80% of tasks
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**Trade-offs:**
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- May struggle with complex multi-step reasoning
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- Tool calling slightly less reliable than Claude
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- Context understanding not as nuanced
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---
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## Cost Optimization Summary
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| Strategy | Savings |
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|----------|---------|
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| Use Kimi/DeepSeek for routine tasks | 50-90% |
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| Enable provider caching | 75-90% |
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| Reserve Claude/GPT for complex tasks | Variable |
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| Use cheaper vision models | 50-70% |
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| Short sessions (`--fresh`) | Reduces context buildup |
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