mcpbeat

Dspy Optimize Anything

omidzamani/dspy-optimize-anything

Use for GEPA optimize_anything on text artifacts such as code, prompts, agent architectures, configs, and non-DSPy optimization targets.

3k tokens
context cost
the whole folder, loaded on every use
2
files
ships runnable scripts
0
copies elsewhere
how many repositories repackaged it
119
stars on the repo
on the repository, not the skill itself

Install

one command, takes just this skill from the repository
npx skills add https://github.com/OmidZamani/dspy-skills --skill dspy-optimize-anything

What comes with it

484 bytes besides the instruction
example.py

The instruction itself

15 sections, as written by the author

GEPA optimize_anything

Goal

Optimize any artifact representable as text — code, prompts, agent architectures, vector graphics, configurations — using a single declarative API powered by GEPA's reflective evolutionary search.

When to Use

  • Beyond prompt optimization — optimizing code, configs, SVGs, scheduling policies, etc.
  • Single hard problems — circle packing, kernel generation, algorithm discovery
  • Batch related problems — CUDA kernels, code generation tasks with cross-transfer
  • Generalization — agent skills, policies, or prompts that must transfer to unseen inputs
  • When you can express quality as a score and provide diagnostic feedback (ASI)

Inputs

| Input | Type | Description |

|-------|------|-------------|

| seed_candidate | str \| dict[str, str] \| None | Starting artifact text, or None for seedless mode |

| evaluator | Callable | Returns score (higher=better), optionally with ASI dict |

| dataset | list \| None | Training examples (for multi-task and generalization modes) |

| valset | list \| None | Validation set (for generalization mode) |

| objective | str \| None | Natural language description of what to optimize for |

| background | str \| None | Domain knowledge and constraints |

| config | GEPAConfig \| None | Engine, reflection, and tracking settings |

Outputs

| Output | Type | Description |

|--------|------|-------------|

| result.best_candidate | str \| dict | Best optimized artifact |

Workflow

Phase 1: Install

pip install -U "gepa>=0.1.1,<0.2"

Phase 2: Define Evaluator with ASI

The evaluator scores a candidate and returns Actionable Side Information (ASI) — diagnostic feedback that guides the LLM proposer during reflection.

Simple evaluator (score only):

import gepa.optimize_anything as oa
from gepa.optimize_anything import EngineConfig, GEPAConfig

config = GEPAConfig(engine=EngineConfig(max_metric_calls=100))

def evaluate(candidate: str) -> float:
    score, diagnostic = run_my_system(candidate)
    oa.log(f"Error: {diagnostic}")  # captured as ASI
    return score

Rich evaluator (score + structured ASI):

def evaluate(candidate: str) -> tuple[float, dict]:
    result = execute_code(candidate)
    return result.score, {
        "Error": result.stderr,
        "Output": result.stdout,
        "Runtime": f"{result.time_ms:.1f}ms",
    }

ASI can include open-ended text, structured data, multi-objectives (via scores), or images (via gepa.Image) for vision-capable LLMs.

Phase 3: Choose Optimization Mode

Mode 1 — Single-Task Search: Solve one hard problem. No dataset needed.

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    seed_candidate="<your initial artifact>",
    evaluator=evaluate,
    config=config,
)

Mode 2 — Multi-Task Search: Solve a batch of related problems with cross-transfer.

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    seed_candidate="<your initial artifact>",
    evaluator=evaluate,
    dataset=tasks,
    config=config,
)

Mode 3 — Generalization: Build a skill/prompt/policy that transfers to unseen problems.

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    seed_candidate="<your initial artifact>",
    evaluator=evaluate,
    dataset=train,
    valset=val,
    config=config,
)

Seedless mode: Describe what you need instead of providing a seed.

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    evaluator=evaluate,
    objective="Generate a Python function `reverse()` that reverses a string.",
    config=config,
)

Phase 4: Use Results

print(result.best_candidate)

Production Example

import gepa.optimize_anything as oa
from gepa import Image
from gepa.optimize_anything import EngineConfig, GEPAConfig
import logging

logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)

# ---------- SVG optimization with VLM feedback ----------

GOAL = "a pelican riding a bicycle"
VLM = "vertex_ai/gemini-3-flash-preview"

VISUAL_ASPECTS = [
    {"id": "overall",     "criteria": f"Rate overall quality of this SVG ({GOAL}). SCORE: X/10"},
    {"id": "anatomy",     "criteria": "Rate pelican accuracy: beak, pouch, plumage. SCORE: X/10"},
    {"id": "bicycle",     "criteria": "Rate bicycle: wheels, frame, handlebars, pedals. SCORE: X/10"},
    {"id": "composition", "criteria": "Rate how convincingly the pelican rides the bicycle. SCORE: X/10"},
]

def evaluate(candidate, example):
    """Render SVG, score with a VLM, return (score, ASI)."""
    image = render_image(candidate["svg_code"])  # via cairosvg
    score, feedback = get_vlm_score_feedback(VLM, image, example["criteria"])

    return score, {
        "RenderedSVG": Image(base64_data=image, media_type="image/png"),
        "Feedback": feedback,
    }

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    seed_candidate={"svg_code": "<svg>...</svg>"},
    evaluator=evaluate,
    dataset=VISUAL_ASPECTS,
    background=f"Optimize SVG source code depicting '{GOAL}'. "
               "Improve anatomy, composition, and visual quality.",
    config=GEPAConfig(engine=EngineConfig(max_metric_calls=100)),
)

logger.info(f"Best SVG:\n{result.best_candidate['svg_code']}")


# ---------- Code optimization (single-task) ----------

def evaluate_solver(candidate: str) -> tuple[float, dict]:
    """Evaluate a Python solver for a mathematical optimization problem."""
    import subprocess, json

    proc = subprocess.run(
        ["python", "-c", candidate],
        capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=30,
    )

    if proc.returncode != 0:
        oa.log(f"Runtime error: {proc.stderr}")
        return 0.0, {"Error": proc.stderr}

    try:
        output = json.loads(proc.stdout)
        return output["score"], {
            "Output": output.get("solution"),
            "Runtime": f"{output.get('time_ms', 0):.1f}ms",
        }
    except (json.JSONDecodeError, KeyError) as e:
        oa.log(f"Parse error: {e}")
        return 0.0, {"Error": str(e), "Stdout": proc.stdout}

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    evaluator=evaluate_solver,
    objective="Write a Python solver for the bin packing problem that "
              "minimizes the number of bins. Output JSON with 'score' and 'solution'.",
    background="Use first-fit-decreasing as a starting heuristic. "
               "Higher score = fewer bins used.",
    config=GEPAConfig(engine=EngineConfig(max_metric_calls=100)),
)

print(result.best_candidate)


# ---------- Agent architecture generalization ----------

def evaluate_agent(candidate: str, example: dict) -> tuple[float, dict]:
    """Run an agent architecture on a task and score it."""
    exec_globals = {}
    exec(candidate, exec_globals)
    agent_fn = exec_globals.get("solve")

    if agent_fn is None:
        return 0.0, {"Error": "No `solve` function defined"}

    try:
        prediction = agent_fn(example["input"])
        correct = prediction == example["expected"]
        score = 1.0 if correct else 0.0
        feedback = "Correct" if correct else (
            f"Expected '{example['expected']}', got '{prediction}'"
        )
        return score, {"Prediction": prediction, "Feedback": feedback}
    except Exception as e:
        return 0.0, {"Error": str(e)}

result = oa.optimize_anything(
    seed_candidate="def solve(input):\n    return input",
    evaluator=evaluate_agent,
    dataset=train_tasks,
    valset=val_tasks,
    background="Discover a Python agent function `solve(input)` that "
               "generalizes across unseen reasoning tasks.",
    config=GEPAConfig(engine=EngineConfig(max_metric_calls=100)),
)

print(result.best_candidate)

Integration with DSPy

optimize_anything complements DSPy's built-in optimizers. Use DSPy optimizers (GEPA, MIPROv2, BootstrapFewShot) for DSPy programs, and optimize_anything for arbitrary text artifacts outside DSPy:

import dspy
import gepa.optimize_anything as oa
from gepa.optimize_anything import EngineConfig, GEPAConfig

# DSPy program optimization (use dspy.GEPA)
optimizer = dspy.GEPA(
    metric=gepa_metric,
    reflection_lm=dspy.LM("openai/gpt-4o"),
    auto="medium",
)
compiled = optimizer.compile(agent, trainset=trainset)

# Non-DSPy artifact optimization (use optimize_anything)
result = oa.optimize_anything(
    seed_candidate=my_config_yaml,
    evaluator=eval_config,
    background="Optimize Kubernetes scheduling policy for cost.",
    config=GEPAConfig(engine=EngineConfig(max_metric_calls=100)),
)

Best Practices

  • Rich ASI — The more diagnostic feedback you provide, the better the proposer can reason about improvements
  • Use oa.log() — Route prints to the proposer as ASI instead of stdout
  • Structured returns — Return (score, dict) tuples for multi-faceted diagnostics
  • Seedless for exploration — Use objective= when the solution space is large and unfamiliar
  • Background context — Provide domain knowledge via background= to constrain the search
  • Generalization mode — Always provide valset when the artifact must transfer to unseen inputs
  • Images as ASI — Use gepa.Image to pass rendered outputs to vision-capable LLMs
  • Bound every run — Set GEPAConfig(engine=EngineConfig(max_metric_calls=...))

Limitations

  • Requires the gepa package (pip install -U "gepa>=0.1.1,<0.2")
  • Evaluator must be deterministic or low-variance for stable optimization
  • Compute cost scales with number of candidates explored
  • Single-task mode does not generalize; use mode 3 with valset for transfer
  • Currently powered by GEPA backend; API is backend-agnostic for future strategies

Official Documentation

  • GEPA optimize_anything guide: https://gepa-ai.github.io/gepa/blog/introducing-optimize-anything/
  • GEPA quick start: https://gepa-ai.github.io/gepa/guides/quickstart/
  • GEPA GitHub: https://github.com/gepa-ai/gepa

How to use it

Copy the folder

Take omidzamani/dspy-optimize-anything from the repository into ~/.claude/skills for personal use, or into .claude/skills inside a project.

Check the name does not clash

The agent identifies a skill by the name field in its header. Two skills with the same name cannot sit side by side — one of them will be ignored.

Install what it needs

The instructions reference pip. Without those the skill loads but fails at the first command.