Develop or amend an idea

Compile a plain-words idea into a rule, or amend an existing one by id. Free, but needs a positive balance. Any chat on an idea sends it back to the start of the conveyor.

POST/api/lab/chat

Plan LABKey scope labLimit Credits; one idea on the conveyor at a timeVersion 1.0.0Since 2026-08-12

This endpoint serves

Plan: LAB. LAB credits: developing an idea is free, a backtest or an optimize pass is one credit, the desk is free once an idea is tested. LIVE includes 5 credits a month. Pricing.

Body

Field	Meaning	Unit
messagestring	Plain-English research idea
idstring	Existing LAB idea id to amend

Response

kind: "spec" with the compiled idea, or kind: "chat" with a question.

Field	Meaning	Unit
kindspec \| chat \| error	`spec`, `chat` or `error`.
saystring	LAB's answer in words.
ideaobject	With `spec`: `{ id, name, spec }`.
errorsarray	With `error`: what could not compile.

Errors

Status	Code	What to do
400		A parameter is wrong.
401		No key, or an unknown or revoked one. Send a `lab` key.
402		No credits. Buy credits on the LAB page.
404		No such idea or job. Check the id.
422		The rule could not be compiled or was refused (refunded). Change the rule.

Every code: Errors.

Changes

2026-08-12 Added.

OpenAPI operation labChat in /docs/developers/openapi.json.

Measurements of dealer positioning, never a forecast or a trade call. This page is built from FirmTape's public contract, the same files the OpenAPI document is built from; the tests hold them against the route code. Markdown: /docs/developers/lab/chat.md.