SimpleBot

Overview

SimpleBot is a lightweight Python package that reduces LLM interaction to a single function call. It is the entry point for students who have never written code that talks to an AI model.

GitHub: michael-borck/simplebot Install: pip install simplebot

Why SimpleBot?

Most LLM libraries require students to understand API clients, message formatting, authentication, and async patterns before they can get a response. SimpleBot removes all of that:

from simplebot import get_response

answer = get_response("What is photosynthesis?")
print(answer)

One import. One function. One response. The student is talking to a model in three lines.

Personality Bots

Pre-built personality functions let students explore how system prompts shape model behaviour without writing prompt templates:

from simplebot import pirate_bot, teacher_bot, coder_bot

pirate_bot("Tell me about sailing ships")
teacher_bot("Explain gravity to a 10-year-old")
coder_bot("Write a function to reverse a string")

Available personalities include pirate, shakespeare, emoji, teacher, coder, and more. Each one is a thin wrapper around get_response() with a different system prompt — students can read the source to see exactly how it works.

Local First

SimpleBot defaults to a local Ollama server at http://localhost:11434. No API keys, no cloud accounts, no cost. Students can also point it at any OpenAI-compatible endpoint for cloud providers.

The Rehearsal

SimpleBot is rehearsal for AI development. Students practise the fundamental interaction pattern — send a prompt, receive a response — in the simplest possible form. Once they are comfortable here, they move to HandsOnAI for more sophisticated patterns (RAG, agents), and eventually to building full applications.

SimpleBot is also the case study from Ship Python, Orchestrate AI: Professional Python in the AI Era by Michael Borck, teaching best practices for professional Python packaging alongside LLM interaction.

Part of LocoEnsayo

LocoEnsayo covers two types of rehearsal: professional skills (talking to AI characters in simulated organisations) and AI development (learning to build AI applications). SimpleBot is the foundation of the development track.