VB.NET

Multimodal Input: File Data

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Demonstrates sending a request that includes both text and PDF file data for the AI to analyze.

Note: At the time of writing this example, xAI, Perplexity, and DeepSeek do not have the ability to accept non-image multimodal data or URLs.

VB.NET

Dim success As Boolean = False

'  This example assumes the Chilkat API to have been previously unlocked.
'  See Global Unlock Sample for sample code.

Dim ai As New Chilkat.Ai

'  The provider can be "openai", "google", or "claude".
'  At the time of writing this example, "deepseek", "xai", and "perplexity" do not have the ability to process non-image multimodal inputs.
'  Support for additional providers will be added in future versions of Chilkat.
ai.Provider = "claude"

'  Use your provider's API key.
ai.ApiKey = "MY_API_KEY"

'  Choose a model.
ai.Model = "claude-opus-5"

'  Add both text input, and PDF file data.
ai.InputAddText("What is in this file?")

Dim bd As New Chilkat.BinData
'  We're passing a relative local file path here.. (relative the the app's current working directory)
success = bd.LoadFile("qa_data/pdf/shakespeare.pdf")
If (success = False) Then
    Debug.WriteLine(bd.LastErrorText)
    Exit Sub
End If


'  Provide the filename in the 1st argument.  The file extension is important to indicate the type of file.
ai.InputAddFileData("shakespeare.pdf",bd,"")

'  Ask the AI for text output.
success = ai.Ask("text")
If (success = False) Then
    Debug.WriteLine(ai.LastErrorText)
    Exit Sub
End If


'  Get the text response.
Dim sbResponse As New Chilkat.StringBuilder
ai.GetOutputTextSb(sbResponse)
Debug.WriteLine(sbResponse.GetAsString())

'  -------------------------------------------------------------
'  The response is in markdown format.
'  Also see Markdown to HTML Conversion Examples.
'  -------------------------------------------------------------

'  Sample output:

'  This PDF file contains a famous quote from William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet". The quote appears twice on the page:
'  
'  "These violent delights have violent ends
'  And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
'  Which as they kiss consume. The sweetest honey
'  Is loathsome in his own deliciousness
'  And in the taste confounds the appetite.
'  Therefore love moderately; long love doth so;
'  Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow."
'  
'  The file also includes a portrait image of William Shakespeare. This particular quote is spoken by Friar Lawrence in the play, warning about the dangers of passionate, 
'  immoderate love - suggesting that love that burns too intensely tends to burn out quickly, just as fire and gunpowder consume each other when they meet.