agent-contracts-app-builder

Use this skill when you are implementing an AI agent using agent-contracts (not modifying the library itself).

Outcomes

• A working agent with well-defined state slices and node contracts
• CI-friendly validation (ContractValidator(strict=True) + agent-contracts validate --strict)
• Architecture docs (agent-contracts visualize) and contract change review (agent-contracts diff)

Workflow (recommended)

1. Start from a runnable baseline
   • Use examples/05_backend_runtime.py as the default backend-shaped reference.
2. Design your state slices
   • Keep request, response, _internal as the core.
   • Add domain slices (e.g., ticket, orders, workflow) and register them via NodeRegistry.add_valid_slice(...).
3. Implement nodes contract-first
   • Each node: NodeContract(name, description, reads, writes, supervisor, trigger_conditions, requires_llm, services, is_terminal).
   • Keep writes=["request"] out of your design (discouraged).
4. Wire via registry + GraphBuilder
   • Register nodes into a NodeRegistry.
   • Build with build_graph_from_registry(...), set entry point, compile.
5. Add runtime wrapper
   • Use AgentRuntime (or StreamingRuntime when you need SSE-style progress events).
6. Make it safe to change
   • Run ContractValidator(strict=True) in tests/CI.
   • Use agent-contracts diff to review breaking contract changes across versions.
   • Generate architecture docs with agent-contracts visualize.

Quick Checks

• Tests: pytest
• Coverage: pytest --cov=agent_contracts --cov-report=term-missing
• Contracts: agent-contracts validate --strict --module <your.nodes.module>
• Docs: agent-contracts visualize --module <your.nodes.module> --output ARCHITECTURE.md

Common Patterns

Backend request/response agent

• Use RequestContext + AgentRuntime for API handlers.
• Treat response.response_type as your API “type”, and keep payload in response.response_data.

Multi-step workflow

• Use a domain slice (e.g., workflow) + _internal flags to drive steps (see examples/04_multi_step_workflow.py).

Interactive (question/answer) flow

• Use InteractiveNode for ask/process/check loops (see docs/core_concepts.md).

References (load only when needed)

• docs/getting_started.md
• docs/core_concepts.md
• docs/best_practices.md
• docs/cli.md
• examples/