Choose an integration
Choose direct llamadart, Genkit flows, or Flutter Edge AI orchestration without changing runtime ownership.
Choose the application API first, then choose a model and runtime. All three routes use llamadart for GGUF inference; direct and Genkit APIs also support compatible LiteRT-LM bundles; adding an orchestration layer does not make a model support tools, strict JSON, images or embeddings.
| Start with | When it fits | First request |
|---|---|---|
Direct llamadart |
You want engine control, a small dependency graph, or your own chat/history policy.
ChatSession
adds managed history.
|
Core quickstart |
genkit_llamadart |
You already use Genkit, or want its flows, tools, retrieval and telemetry around local inference. | Genkit setup |
flutter_edge_ai with flutter_edge_ai_llama |
You want Flutter Edge AI to own model installation, selection and app chat lifecycle, with GGUF as an additional engine. | Flutter Edge AI source quickstart |
Versions and availability#
Checked on 2026-10-18:
| Route | Available combination | Qualification boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Direct |
Published
llamadart 0.15.1
; matching
0.15.x
Apple companions for each selected runtime
|
See the runtime support matrix ; devices, models and backends have separate limits. |
| Genkit |
Published
genkit_llamadart 3.4.0
,
genkit 1.0.0
,
llamadart 0.15.1
; Dart 3.12+
|
Adapter fake/browser guards and selected native model tests cover specific paths. They do not qualify every Genkit Web deployment. |
| Flutter Edge AI |
Upstream source connector
0.0.1
, core
2.4.0
,
llamadart 0.13.1
, GGUF Apple companion
0.13.0
|
Connector remains
publish_to: none
. Use its pinned source example. The
0.15.0
upgrade
PR #684
and embedding SPI
PR #685
are pending, not released setup.
|
The Genkit package now lives under packages/genkit_llamadart in this repository.
Its package name, package:genkit_llamadart/... imports, version and changelog
remain independent. Published 3.4.0 came from the original repository; the move
does not republish it. Detailed adapter guides remain in the
package documentation.
Flutter Edge AI and its connector remain owned by their upstream repository.
Ownership and feature boundaries#
Use one owner for chat history and runtime lifetime. A direct ChatSession
can own history in a direct app; Genkit and Flutter Edge AI integrations already
manage their own history. Avoid putting a second session/history manager around
them. Cancel through the active adapter and dispose its model/plugin owner
when your app finishes using it.
| Feature | Direct | Genkit | Flutter Edge AI GGUF connector |
|---|---|---|---|
| Generation and streaming | LlamaEngine.create, optional ChatSession |
generate, generateStream; inspect the final result |
Installed model, chat session, typed streamed responses |
| Tools | Model/template/runtime dependent | Genkit tool loop, runtime capability checks; tool guide | Model dependent typed tools; advanced guide |
| Strict structured output | Grammar-capable runtime; see structured output | Grammar required; strict JSON with tools has additional native/template limits | Check the connector's response/schema API; a tool schema is not a promise of a Genkit-style strict JSON API |
| RAG and embeddings | Embeddings , RAG tutorial | Text and capability-probed image/audio embeddings; local retrieval | GGUF embedding integration is deferred; #685 is not shipped support |
| Image/audio chat and media tasks | Compatible model and runtime required | Media guide ; batch transcription, synthesis and image generation have distinct native owners | Compatible projector and model; connector capabilities differ from other Edge AI engines |
Runtime setup still applies#
Native build hooks download and bundle the selected runtime. Apple Flutter apps need the matching direct runtime companion and deployment targets; Web apps need bridge assets, workers, CORS and the required cross-origin headers. Follow installation, native build hooks and Web bridge setup.
When combining Edge AI's LiteRT-LM engine with llamadart, keep llama.cpp as the only llamadart native runtime. Selecting both LiteRT-LM distributions can cause native symbol/library collisions. The Edge AI guide links the application-level hook configuration. Runtime owners and published artifacts remain separate from these adapters; source support is not artifact qualification.