improvement(models): sort model dropdown by latest release date within each provider (#5099)

* improvement(models): sort model dropdown by latest release date within each provider

* fix(models): preserve input provider order and build catalog index once

Author: waleedlatif1

apps/sim/blocks/utils.ts

@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import {
   getHostedModels,
   getProviderIcon,
   getProviderModels,
+  orderModelIdsByReleaseDate,
 } from '@/providers/models'
 import { useProvidersStore } from '@/stores/providers/store'
 
@@ -48,7 +49,7 @@ export const SERVICE_ACCOUNT_SUBBLOCKS: SubBlockConfig[] = [
  */
 export function getModelOptions() {
   const providersState = useProvidersStore.getState()
-  const baseModels = providersState.providers.base.models
+  const baseModels = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(providersState.providers.base.models)
   const ollamaModels = providersState.providers.ollama.models
   const ollamaCloudModels = providersState.providers['ollama-cloud'].models
   const vllmModels = providersState.providers.vllm.models

apps/sim/providers/models.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,104 @@
+/**
+ * @vitest-environment node
+ */
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+import {
+  getBaseModelProviders,
+  orderModelIdsByReleaseDate,
+  PROVIDER_DEFINITIONS,
+} from '@/providers/models'
+
+/** Maps a lowercased model ID to its provider's index in the catalog. */
+const PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL = new Map<string, number>()
+/** Maps a lowercased model ID to its release time (ms), or null when undated. */
+const RELEASE_TIME_BY_MODEL = new Map<string, number | null>()
+for (const [providerIndex, provider] of Object.values(PROVIDER_DEFINITIONS).entries()) {
+  for (const model of provider.models) {
+    const id = model.id.toLowerCase()
+    PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.set(id, providerIndex)
+    RELEASE_TIME_BY_MODEL.set(id, model.releaseDate ? Date.parse(model.releaseDate) : null)
+  }
+}
+
+describe('orderModelIdsByReleaseDate', () => {
+  it('keeps provider grouping order intact', () => {
+    const ordered = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(Object.keys(getBaseModelProviders()))
+    let lastProviderIndex = -1
+    const seenProviders = new Set<number>()
+    for (const id of ordered) {
+      const providerIndex = PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.get(id.toLowerCase())
+      expect(providerIndex).toBeDefined()
+      // A provider's models must form one contiguous run: once we leave a provider
+      // we never return to it.
+      if (providerIndex !== lastProviderIndex) {
+        expect(seenProviders.has(providerIndex as number)).toBe(false)
+        seenProviders.add(providerIndex as number)
+        lastProviderIndex = providerIndex as number
+      }
+    }
+  })
+
+  it('sorts models within a provider newest-first by release date', () => {
+    const ordered = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(Object.keys(getBaseModelProviders()))
+    for (let i = 1; i < ordered.length; i++) {
+      const prev = ordered[i - 1].toLowerCase()
+      const curr = ordered[i].toLowerCase()
+      if (PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.get(prev) !== PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.get(curr)) continue
+
+      const prevTime = RELEASE_TIME_BY_MODEL.get(prev)
+      const currTime = RELEASE_TIME_BY_MODEL.get(curr)
+      // Dated models precede undated ones; among dated models, newer precedes older.
+      if (prevTime == null) {
+        expect(currTime).toBeNull()
+      } else if (currTime != null) {
+        expect(prevTime).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(currTime)
+      }
+    }
+  })
+
+  it('preserves the cross-provider grouping order given in the input', () => {
+    // Pick the first model of two different providers and feed the second provider
+    // first; the helper must keep that provider's group ahead of the other.
+    const byProvider = new Map<number, string[]>()
+    for (const id of Object.keys(getBaseModelProviders())) {
+      const providerIndex = PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.get(id.toLowerCase()) as number
+      const bucket = byProvider.get(providerIndex) ?? []
+      bucket.push(id)
+      byProvider.set(providerIndex, bucket)
+    }
+    const providerIndexes = [...byProvider.keys()]
+    expect(providerIndexes.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(2)
+    const [firstProvider, secondProvider] = providerIndexes
+    const fromFirst = byProvider.get(firstProvider) as string[]
+    const fromSecond = byProvider.get(secondProvider) as string[]
+
+    // Input order intentionally leads with the second provider.
+    const input = [fromSecond[0], fromFirst[0]]
+    const ordered = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(input)
+    expect(PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.get(ordered[0].toLowerCase())).toBe(secondProvider)
+    expect(PROVIDER_INDEX_BY_MODEL.get(ordered[1].toLowerCase())).toBe(firstProvider)
+  })
+
+  it('places unknown model IDs last, preserving their input order', () => {
+    const known = Object.keys(getBaseModelProviders())[0]
+    const ordered = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(['mystery-a', known, 'mystery-b'])
+    expect(ordered[0]).toBe(known)
+    expect(ordered.slice(1)).toEqual(['mystery-a', 'mystery-b'])
+  })
+
+  it('is case-insensitive when matching catalog IDs', () => {
+    const id = Object.keys(getBaseModelProviders())[0]
+    const ordered = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate([id.toUpperCase()])
+    expect(ordered).toEqual([id.toUpperCase()])
+  })
+
+  it('returns an empty array for empty input', () => {
+    expect(orderModelIdsByReleaseDate([])).toEqual([])
+  })
+
+  it('does not add or drop any IDs', () => {
+    const input = Object.keys(getBaseModelProviders())
+    const ordered = orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(input)
+    expect([...ordered].sort()).toEqual([...input].sort())
+  })
+})

apps/sim/providers/models.ts

@@ -3047,6 +3047,73 @@ export function getProviderModels(providerId: string): string[] {
   return PROVIDER_DEFINITIONS[providerId]?.models.map((m) => m.id) || []
 }
 
+interface ModelCatalogEntry {
+  providerId: string
+  declIndex: number
+  releaseTime: number
+}
+
+/**
+ * Lowercased model ID → catalog position metadata, built once from the static
+ * provider catalog. Dynamic providers contribute nothing here because their model
+ * lists are populated at runtime (not at module load), and only catalog models are
+ * ever reordered by release date.
+ */
+const MODEL_CATALOG_INDEX: Map<string, ModelCatalogEntry> = new Map(
+  Object.entries(PROVIDER_DEFINITIONS).flatMap(([providerId, provider]) =>
+    provider.models.map((model, declIndex): [string, ModelCatalogEntry] => {
+      const parsed = model.releaseDate ? Date.parse(model.releaseDate) : Number.NaN
+      return [
+        model.id.toLowerCase(),
+        {
+          providerId,
+          declIndex,
+          releaseTime: Number.isNaN(parsed) ? Number.NEGATIVE_INFINITY : parsed,
+        },
+      ]
+    })
+  )
+)
+
+/**
+ * Reorders model IDs so that, within each provider, newer models (by release date)
+ * come first — while preserving the caller's existing provider grouping order. The
+ * relative order of providers is taken from the order they first appear in `modelIds`,
+ * so the cross-provider layout the user already sees is never reshuffled.
+ *
+ * Models without a known release date keep their declaration order and sort after
+ * dated models within the same provider. IDs not found in the catalog (e.g.
+ * dynamically-discovered provider models) are left in their original order at the end.
+ */
+export function orderModelIdsByReleaseDate(modelIds: string[]): string[] {
+  const groups = new Map<string, string[]>()
+  const unknown: string[] = []
+
+  for (const id of modelIds) {
+    const meta = MODEL_CATALOG_INDEX.get(id.toLowerCase())
+    if (!meta) {
+      unknown.push(id)
+      continue
+    }
+    const bucket = groups.get(meta.providerId)
+    if (bucket) bucket.push(id)
+    else groups.set(meta.providerId, [id])
+  }
+
+  const ordered: string[] = []
+  for (const bucket of groups.values()) {
+    bucket.sort((a, b) => {
+      const ma = MODEL_CATALOG_INDEX.get(a.toLowerCase())!
+      const mb = MODEL_CATALOG_INDEX.get(b.toLowerCase())!
+      if (ma.releaseTime !== mb.releaseTime) return mb.releaseTime - ma.releaseTime
+      return ma.declIndex - mb.declIndex
+    })
+    ordered.push(...bucket)
+  }
+  ordered.push(...unknown)
+  return ordered
+}
+
 export const DYNAMIC_MODEL_PROVIDERS = [
   'ollama',
   'ollama-cloud',