Core Concepts

Understanding Halfred's key concepts including model profiles, pricing, credits, and tokens for optimal AI integration.

What You'll Learn

This section covers the fundamental concepts you need to know:

The Halfred Philosophy

Halfred was built on a simple principle: developers shouldn't need to become AI experts to build AI-powered features.

Instead of:

  • Comparing dozens of models

  • Managing multiple provider accounts

  • Worrying about which model is best for each task

  • Dealing with different APIs and billing systems

You get:

  • Profile-based selection - Choose based on your needs (speed, cost, quality)

  • Automatic routing - Halfred picks the best model behind the scenes

  • Unified interface - One API for all providers

  • Transparent pricing - Simple prepaid credit system

Key Concepts at a Glance

Model Profiles

Halfred organizes AI models into profiles based on use cases:

Profile
Best For
Price

LITE

Simple tasks, UI assistants

$0.50/M tokens

STANDARD

Most production apps

$2.50/M tokens

DEEPTHINK

Complex reasoning, R&D

$12.50/M tokens

DEV

Testing & development

Free

For the most up-to-date pricing, please refer to the Profile Dashboard (requires login).

Learn more about profiles

Credits & Billing

  • Prepaid system: Add credits before use

  • No surprises: You can't spend more than your balance

  • Transparent costs: Each request shows token usage and price

  • Flexible packages: Buy credits as needed

Learn more about pricing

Tokens

  • What: Small units of text that models process

  • Why it matters: Billing is based on tokens

  • Context limits: Each profile has a maximum token capacity

  • Optimization: Shorter prompts = lower costs

Learn more about tokens

Design Principles

1. Simplicity First

Choose a profile, not a model. Halfred handles the complexity.

2. Transparent Pricing

Know exactly what you'll pay before making a request.

3. Multi-Provider Access

Access the best models from multiple providers through one API.

4. Developer Experience

Built by developers, for developers. Clean APIs, great docs, fast support.

Next Steps

  1. Understand profiles: Start with Model Profiles

  2. Learn about costs: Read Pricing & Credits

  3. Optimize usage: Explore Tokens Explained

  4. Start building: Go to Quick Start Guide

Questions?

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