Paidf Curation And Retrieval

PAIDF Curator Operator Skill

GPU-accelerated video and image curation via NVIDIA Cosmos Curator inside Physical AI Data Factory — Curation and Retrieval (paidf-curation-and-retrieval). This skill is a short Curator index. Embedding handoff boundaries live in data-mining.md and curation-retrieval-workflow.md; mining execution is make help and the repository cookbooks.

• Video: split, dedup, shard.
• Image: annotate (load → filter → embed → caption → write).
• Handoff: Curator IV2 or CE1 parquet that downstream mining can consume. See data-mining.md and curation-retrieval-workflow.md.

Purpose

Turn raw video and image collections into curated, training-ready datasets. This skill configures and runs cosmos-curator pipelines (clip splitting, filtering, captioning, embeddings, SAM3 event verification, dedup, WebDataset sharding, image annotate) and supports KPI-driven, distribution-aware, and restrictive curation.

Instructions

1. Classify the request as advisory, config, run, or TAO handoff. Do not mix those routes.
2. For config work, complete the mandatory pre-flight below before writing YAML.
3. For an explicit run, load running-pipelines.md, validate the config, obtain credentials only through approved injection, then execute after authorization.
4. For a TAO handoff, validate Curator output and the declared embedding family using data-mining.md before mining.
5. Return the Output Format below. Never print secret values.

Examples

• Advisory: "How much SHM should I set?" → read running-pipelines.md and report guidance. Do not run Docker.
• Config with no KPI: complete the calibration interview in calibration-config.md, then emit YAML.
• Run: after sample clips are staged, make run-pipeline with the traffic split-minimal cookbook recipe only after preflight and user authorization.
• FFmpeg missing in the container: install the host sidecar (make ffmpeg-install) per ffmpeg-sidecar.md.

Inputs

Required inputs depend on the route:

• Advisory request: the question plus relevant repository and config context.
• Config request: input and output locations, domain and goal, available KPI output or representative samples, and hardware constraints. If neither KPI output nor samples exist, complete the calibration interview before writing YAML.
• Run request: reviewed config path, data and model paths, runtime, GPU, and SHM constraints, and explicit authorization to execute.
• TAO handoff: validated artifact paths and declared embedding family.

Optional inputs include target distributions, event taxonomy, prompt choices, existing output metadata, and user-approved operational constraints.

Resolve inputs in this order: repository configuration and validated run artifacts; explicit prompt arguments and corrections; available agent context; then the broad user prompt. Explicit user instructions remain authoritative unless unsafe or incompatible, in which case stop and explain the conflict. Never infer secret values: credentials come only from approved runtime injection.

Prerequisites

• GPU host with NVIDIA drivers + nvidia-container-toolkit; Docker. SHM sized from host RAM (SHM_SIZE, default 24gb).
• cosmos-curator image: make pull uses the pin configured by the example env file and Make. No separate product engine image. Source builds are developer-only; see cosmos-curator.md.
• FFmpeg host sidecar for distributable images (make ffmpeg-install) — they do not bundle FFmpeg. See ffmpeg-sidecar.md.
• Credentials as needed: inject S3 and captioning API keys at runtime through an approved secret manager or operator deployment mechanism. Never put secret values in repository files, commands, logs, or examples. The env file is for non-secret image and CDS profile overrides copied from the example env file.

Mandatory pre-flight: do NOT emit a pipeline config without context

Before writing any *.yaml pipeline config, the agent MUST verify that one of the following is true:

1. KPI run output exists -- read it and use distribution-analysis.md, distribution-aware-curation.md, and configuration-decision-tree.md.
2. KPI sample videos are available for inspection / discovery -- follow context-understanding.md Phase 1.
3. No KPI of any kind -- no baseline exists. Read calibration-config.md and complete its Phase 1 interview (Inputs / Domain / Goal / Hardware / Calibration) BEFORE emitting a config. The interview is binding, not advisory.

If the user requests a config with only a one-line description ("configure cosmos-curator for my videos"), assume the calibration workflow and ask the Phase 1 interview questions in one batched message. Emit the config only after the answers come back, and always include the calibration disclosure table that flags every defaulted field.

Canonical Flow

Choose one route; do not collapse advisory and execution branches:

1. Advisory only (sizing, monitoring, troubleshooting, expected commands): inspect repository, config, and run evidence, load running-pipelines.md, and report guidance. Do not prepare credentials or execute.
2. Create or change config:
   • KPI output exists → analyze it, choose standard, distribution-aware, or restrictive curation, then emit a reviewed config.
   • Representative samples exist → inspect them or run discovery before selecting defaults.
   • Neither exists → complete the binding calibration interview; emit config and disclosure only after answers. Stop if required paths, intent, or hardware constraints remain unresolved.
3. Explicit run request: prepare runtime → obtain credentials through approved injection → validate config and runtime → request approval if not already granted → execute → validate outputs. Stop before execution on any failed preflight.
4. Downstream TAO handoff: validate Curator output and embedding family, then prepare compatible inputs for Data Mining. Mine only after the preceding artifact validation succeeds.

Configs are flat YAML with pipeline: split|dedup|shard|annotate and upstream snake_case argument names. Operator first-run recipes live under the cookbook tree (split-minimal then full split, dedup, and shard YAML). The configs directory is the full flag reference and the Makefile default when CONFIG_FILE is omitted. split writes clips, metadata, and embeddings; dedup consumes embeddings; shard writes WebDataset archives; annotate processes still images (image annotate flag-reference YAML; no image cookbook).