Sponsor Pools & Multi-Provider Vision

Rastrum supports multiple AI vision providers (Anthropic, Google Vertex, OpenAI) and lets sponsors choose which model their beneficiaries use. Platform pools distribute community credits.

The multi-provider system extends AI sponsorships (see the AI Sponsorships page) with support for multiple vision backends. Each sponsor credential can specify a preferred model, and the identification cascade respects that preference. Platform pools let operators or institutions donate credits that are automatically distributed among users without a BYO key.

Features

Multiple providers: Anthropic Claude, Google Vertex AI, and OpenAI GPT-4o as vision backends. The cascade picks by cost, license, and availability.
Per-sponsor model: Each sponsor can pin a preferred model for their beneficiaries (e.g. Haiku-only to control costs).
Platform pools: Institutional credentials shared across all eligible users. Global monthly cap with fair distribution.
Auto-rotation: When a provider fails or hits its limit, the cascade automatically rotates to the next available provider.
Pool karma: Platform pool contributors earn karma proportional to the usage of their donated credits.

How the cascade works

When a user identifies a photo, Rastrum evaluates available credentials in order: (1) user's BYO key, (2) sponsor credential with preferred model, (3) platform pool, (4) free PlantNet, (5) on-device model. If the preferred provider fails, the system rotates to the next one without user intervention.

Technical spec: docs/specs/modules/32-multi-provider-vision.md