mobile: start new agents on Sonnet at medium effort (#9034)

## Summary The mobile create-agent screen opened with model and thinking effort blank, so the easiest path was picking from the full catalog, expensive models included. A new agent now starts on the first Sonnet model the catalog offers, at medium effort when that model supports it. People can still change either one. - An agent link that suggests a model still wins when Builderlab offers that model. - A setup resumed after a failure keeps the choice it saved. - If the catalog has no Sonnet model, both start blank like today. If the Sonnet model has no medium effort, only effort is left blank. Builderlab doesn't send a default or pricing, so the app matches on "sonnet" in the model id rather than pinning a version. That keeps working when the catalog moves to a newer Sonnet. ## Screenshots Captured from the widget test harness with a catalog listing Opus first, then Sonnet. The avatar preview is blank because the test doesn't load network images. | Narrow, light | Narrow, dark | Wide, light | | --- | --- | --- | | ![Create agent, narrow light](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/block/buzz/8cb0af35dfc38de81ee942b2c3475009549d6370/default-model--create-agent-narrow-light.png) | ![Create agent, narrow dark](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/block/buzz/8cb0af35dfc38de81ee942b2c3475009549d6370/default-model--create-agent-narrow-dark.png) | ![Create agent, wide light](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/block/buzz/8cb0af35dfc38de81ee942b2c3475009549d6370/default-model--create-agent-wide-light.png) | ## Testing - New unit tests cover the default, missing medium effort, no Sonnet, draft model wins, and a draft model the catalog lacks. - A new widget test checks the form opens on Sonnet at medium and only needs a name before Create. - Full mobile suite passes locally with the CI dart-defines (`BUZZ_PUSH_GATEWAY_URL`, `BUZZ_AUTH_DOMAINS`) at 256063f95. 🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code) Signed-off-by: morgmart <98432065+morgmart@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: Carl <c217fe6b9d958f41c3a5e030dccc7f626775a923089cb6491305eade75ea1f1b@buzz.block.builderlab.xyz> Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-11-06 09:21:45 +00:00 · 2026-11-03 22:14:12 -08:00
parent f04fa0904c
commit 0dd778f800
4 changed files with 157 additions and 14 deletions
--- a/mobile/lib/features/agents/agent_model_picker.dart
+++ b/mobile/lib/features/agents/agent_model_picker.dart
@@ -117,3 +117,27 @@ bool validAgentModelSelection(
          (entry) => entry.id == model && entry.efforts.contains(effort),
        ) ==
        true;
+
+/// The model and effort a new agent starts with, so the easy path is a
+/// capable but affordable choice rather than a blank (or the priciest) one.
+/// A draft's own model wins when the catalog offers it; otherwise the first
+/// Sonnet model, at medium effort when supported. Anything the catalog
+/// doesn't offer is left for the user to choose.
+(String?, String?) startingAgentModel(
+  List<RemoteAgentModel> catalog, {
+  String? draftModel,
+  String? draftEffort,
+}) {
+  final drafted = catalog.where((entry) => entry.id == draftModel).firstOrNull;
+  if (drafted != null) {
+    return (
+      drafted.id,
+      drafted.efforts.contains(draftEffort) ? draftEffort : null,
+    );
+  }
+  final fallback = catalog
+      .where((entry) => entry.id.toLowerCase().contains('sonnet'))
+      .firstOrNull;
+  if (fallback == null) return (null, null);
+  return (fallback.id, fallback.efforts.contains('medium') ? 'medium' : null);
+}
--- a/mobile/lib/features/agents/create_agent_page.dart
+++ b/mobile/lib/features/agents/create_agent_page.dart
@@ -1,7 +1,10 @@
 import 'agent_avatar_hero.dart';
 import 'agent_character_artwork.dart';
+
 import 'dart:math';
+
 import 'agent_model_picker.dart';
+
 import 'package:flutter/foundation.dart';
 import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
 import 'package:flutter_hooks/flutter_hooks.dart';
@@ -57,26 +60,25 @@ class CreateAgentPage extends HookConsumerWidget {
    final draft = controller.pending == null ? initialDraft : null;
    final model = useState(controller.pending?['model_id'] as String?);
    final effort = useState(controller.pending?['reasoning_effort'] as String?);
-    // Draft model hints apply to the first catalog that loads (after a failed
-    // load, the one Retry fetches), and only if it offers them.
-    final hintsApplied = useRef(false);
+    // A fresh setup starts from the first catalog that loads (after a failed
+    // load, the one Retry fetches): the draft's model if offered, otherwise
+    // the default. A resumed setup keeps its saved choice.
+    final startApplied = useRef(controller.pending != null);
    useEffect(() {
      final entries = catalog.data;
-      if (draft == null ||
-          hintsApplied.value ||
+      if (startApplied.value ||
          catalog.connectionState != ConnectionState.done ||
          entries == null) {
        return null;
      }
-      hintsApplied.value = true;
-      final match = entries
-          .where((entry) => entry.id == draft.modelId)
-          .firstOrNull;
-      if (match == null) return null;
-      model.value = match.id;
-      effort.value = match.efforts.contains(draft.reasoningEffort)
-          ? draft.reasoningEffort
-          : null;
+      startApplied.value = true;
+      final (startModel, startEffort) = startingAgentModel(
+        entries,
+        draftModel: draft?.modelId,
+        draftEffort: draft?.reasoningEffort,
+      );
+      model.value = startModel;
+      effort.value = startEffort;
      return null;
    }, [catalog.connectionState]);
    final name = useTextEditingController(
--- a/mobile/test/features/agents/agent_model_picker_test.dart
+++ b/mobile/test/features/agents/agent_model_picker_test.dart
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+import 'package:buzz/features/agents/agent_model_picker.dart';
+import 'package:buzz/shared/agents/remote_agents.dart';
+import 'package:flutter_test/flutter_test.dart';
+
+void main() {
+  const opus = RemoteAgentModel(
+    id: 'kgoose-claude-opus-4-6',
+    name: 'Opus',
+    efforts: ['low', 'medium', 'high'],
+  );
+  const sonnet = RemoteAgentModel(
+    id: 'kgoose-claude-sonnet-4-6',
+    name: 'Sonnet',
+    efforts: ['low', 'medium', 'high'],
+  );
+
+  test('defaults to Sonnet at medium effort', () {
+    expect(startingAgentModel([opus, sonnet]), (
+      'kgoose-claude-sonnet-4-6',
+      'medium',
+    ));
+  });
+
+  test('leaves effort for the user when medium is not offered', () {
+    const highOnly = RemoteAgentModel(
+      id: 'claude-sonnet-5',
+      name: 'Sonnet 5',
+      efforts: ['high'],
+    );
+    expect(startingAgentModel([opus, highOnly]), ('claude-sonnet-5', null));
+  });
+
+  test('chooses nothing when no Sonnet is offered', () {
+    expect(startingAgentModel([opus]), (null, null));
+  });
+
+  test('a draft model the catalog offers wins over the default', () {
+    expect(
+      startingAgentModel(
+        [opus, sonnet],
+        draftModel: opus.id,
+        draftEffort: 'high',
+      ),
+      (opus.id, 'high'),
+    );
+    expect(
+      startingAgentModel(
+        [opus, sonnet],
+        draftModel: opus.id,
+        draftEffort: 'max',
+      ),
+      (opus.id, null),
+    );
+  });
+
+  test('a draft model the catalog lacks falls back to the default', () {
+    expect(
+      startingAgentModel(
+        [opus, sonnet],
+        draftModel: 'gone',
+        draftEffort: 'high',
+      ),
+      (sonnet.id, 'medium'),
+    );
+  });
+}
--- a/mobile/test/features/agents/create_agent_page_test.dart
+++ b/mobile/test/features/agents/create_agent_page_test.dart
@@ -1,8 +1,10 @@
 import 'dart:io';
+
 import 'package:buzz/shared/widgets/frosted_app_bar.dart';
 import 'package:buzz/shared/widgets/preset_agent_avatar.dart';
 import 'package:buzz/shared/agents/agent_avatar_catalog.dart';
 import 'package:buzz/features/agents/agent_avatar_editor_page.dart';
+
 import 'dart:async';

 import 'package:buzz/shared/agents/remote_agents.dart';
@@ -228,6 +230,55 @@ void main() {
      expect(h.registry.calls, contains('publish-policy'));
    },
  );
+
+  testWidgets('a new agent starts on the affordable default model', (
+    tester,
+  ) async {
+    final h = await AgentsHarness.create();
+    h.registry.models = [
+      {
+        'id': 'premium-model',
+        'display_name': 'Premium model',
+        'supported_reasoning_efforts': ['low', 'medium', 'high'],
+      },
+      {
+        'id': 'kgoose-claude-sonnet-4-6',
+        'display_name': 'Sonnet',
+        'supported_reasoning_efforts': ['low', 'medium', 'high'],
+      },
+    ];
+    await h.open(tester, directory: [existing]);
+    if (!supportsRemoteAgents(h.community)) return;
+    await tester.tap(find.byTooltip('Add agent'));
+    await tester.pumpAndSettle();
+
+    expect(find.text('Sonnet'), findsOneWidget);
+    expect(find.text('Premium model'), findsNothing);
+    expect(find.text('medium'), findsOneWidget);
+
+    // Naming it is all that's left before Create.
+    await tester.enterText(
+      find.descendant(
+        of: find.byWidgetPredicate(
+          (widget) => widget is Semantics && widget.properties.label == 'Name',
+        ),
+        matching: find.byType(TextField),
+      ),
+      'Scout',
+    );
+    await tester.pump();
+    expect(
+      tester
+          .widget<IconButton>(
+            find.ancestor(
+              of: find.byTooltip('Create'),
+              matching: find.byType(IconButton),
+            ),
+          )
+          .onPressed,
+      isNotNull,
+    );
+  });
 }

 class _StalledPosterClient implements HttpClient {