Amortize LLM research cost across generated articles (v0.5.2)

Research LLM call runs once per pipeline but was logged with no run_id
or post_id, making it invisible in per-article cost breakdowns. Now the
pipeline's cost tracker flows through Source_Collector to the research
provider, tagging costs with the run_id. After all articles complete,
amortize_research_costs() divides the cost evenly and inserts one row
per article. link_generation_logs() excludes llm_research stage so the
first article doesn't grab the full cost.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -5,6 +5,26 @@ All notable changes to PRAutoBlogger will be documented in this file.
 Format follows [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
 and this project uses [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/).
 
+## [0.5.2] — 2026-04-20
+
+### Added
+- **LLM research cost amortization.** The research LLM call (which runs once
+  per pipeline execution) is now divided evenly across all articles produced
+  in that run. Each article's cost breakdown popover shows its amortized share
+  of the research overhead. Previously, research costs were orphaned with no
+  post attribution.
+  - `Post_Assembler::amortize_research_costs()` — Queries the unlinked
+    research log entry, divides cost and tokens by article count, inserts one
+    row per article, and removes the original.
+  - `link_generation_logs()` now excludes `llm_research` stage from per-article
+    linking so the cost isn't grabbed wholesale by the first article.
+  - `Source_Collector::set_cost_tracker()` — Accepts the pipeline's cost
+    tracker so research costs are tagged with the pipeline's `run_id`.
+  - `LLM_Research_Provider` now uses the pipeline's cost tracker when available,
+    ensuring research log entries share the same `run_id` as article entries.
+  - Amortization runs after all articles complete (both single-article and
+    chained-job paths in `Pipeline_Runner`).
+
 ## [0.5.1] — 2026-04-20
 
 ### Added

includes/core/class-pipeline-runner.php

@@ -75,6 +75,8 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_Pipeline_Runner {
 		if ( ! empty( $ideas ) ) {
 			$this->queue_remaining( $ideas, $cost_tracker->get_run_id(), $result );
 		} else {
+			// Single-article run — amortize research costs now (1 article = full cost).
+			PRAutoBlogger_Post_Assembler::amortize_research_costs( $cost_tracker->get_run_id() );
 			$this->log_summary( $result );
 		}
 
@@ -134,6 +136,8 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_Pipeline_Runner {
 			$this->update_queue_status( $queue );
 			$this->schedule_next();
 		} else {
+			// All articles done — amortize shared research costs across them.
+			PRAutoBlogger_Post_Assembler::amortize_research_costs( $queue['run_id'] );
 			$this->write_final_status( $queue['results'] );
 			delete_option( self::QUEUE_KEY );
 			PRAutoBlogger_Generation_Lock::release();
@@ -153,7 +157,9 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_Pipeline_Runner {
 		$target = absint( get_option( 'prautoblogger_daily_article_target', 1 ) );
 
 		$this->broadcast_stage( __( 'Collecting sources from Reddit…', 'prautoblogger' ) );
-		( new PRAutoBlogger_Source_Collector() )->collect_from_all_sources();
+		( new PRAutoBlogger_Source_Collector() )
+			->set_cost_tracker( $cost_tracker )
+			->collect_from_all_sources();
 
 		$this->broadcast_stage( __( 'Analyzing topics and scoring…', 'prautoblogger' ) );
 		$llm      = new PRAutoBlogger_OpenRouter_Provider();

includes/core/class-post-assembler.php

@@ -58,10 +58,13 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_Post_Assembler {
 		$table = $wpdb->prefix . 'prautoblogger_generation_log';
 
 		if ( null !== $run_id && '' !== $run_id ) {
+			// Exclude 'llm_research' stage — those shared costs are amortized
+			// across all articles after the full pipeline completes, not linked
+			// to a single post. See amortize_research_costs().
 			// phpcs:ignore WordPress.DB.DirectDatabaseQuery.DirectQuery
 			$wpdb->query(
 				$wpdb->prepare(
-					"UPDATE {$table} SET post_id = %d WHERE post_id IS NULL AND run_id = %s",
+					"UPDATE {$table} SET post_id = %d WHERE post_id IS NULL AND run_id = %s AND stage != 'llm_research'",
 					$post_id,
 					$run_id
 				)
@@ -79,6 +82,97 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_Post_Assembler {
 		}
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Amortize shared LLM research costs across all articles in a pipeline run.
+	 *
+	 * The research LLM call runs once per pipeline execution before any articles
+	 * are generated. Its cost is logged with the run_id but no post_id. After all
+	 * articles finish, this method divides the research cost evenly and inserts
+	 * one 'llm_research' row per article so the cost breakdown popover includes
+	 * the amortized research overhead.
+	 *
+	 * Side effects: database SELECT, INSERT, DELETE on generation_log.
+	 *
+	 * @param string|null $run_id Pipeline run UUID. Null or empty is a no-op.
+	 */
+	public static function amortize_research_costs( ?string $run_id ): void {
+		if ( null === $run_id || '' === $run_id ) {
+			return;
+		}
+
+		global $wpdb;
+		$table = $wpdb->prefix . 'prautoblogger_generation_log';
+
+		// Find the unlinked research cost row for this run.
+		// phpcs:ignore WordPress.DB.DirectDatabaseQuery.DirectQuery
+		$research_row = $wpdb->get_row(
+			$wpdb->prepare(
+				"SELECT id, estimated_cost, provider, model, prompt_tokens, completion_tokens
+				FROM {$table}
+				WHERE run_id = %s AND stage = 'llm_research' AND post_id IS NULL
+				LIMIT 1",
+				$run_id
+			)
+		);
+
+		if ( ! $research_row || (float) $research_row->estimated_cost <= 0.0 ) {
+			return; // No research cost to amortize (LLM research not enabled or free).
+		}
+
+		// Count distinct articles produced in this run.
+		// phpcs:ignore WordPress.DB.DirectDatabaseQuery.DirectQuery
+		$post_ids = $wpdb->get_col(
+			$wpdb->prepare(
+				"SELECT DISTINCT post_id FROM {$table} WHERE run_id = %s AND post_id IS NOT NULL",
+				$run_id
+			)
+		);
+
+		$post_count = count( $post_ids );
+		if ( $post_count < 1 ) {
+			return; // No articles produced — nothing to amortize into.
+		}
+
+		$total_cost        = (float) $research_row->estimated_cost;
+		$amortized_cost    = $total_cost / $post_count;
+		$total_prompt      = (int) $research_row->prompt_tokens;
+		$total_completion  = (int) $research_row->completion_tokens;
+		$amortized_prompt  = (int) round( $total_prompt / $post_count );
+		$amortized_compl   = (int) round( $total_completion / $post_count );
+
+		// Insert one amortized research row per article.
+		foreach ( $post_ids as $post_id ) {
+			// phpcs:ignore WordPress.DB.DirectDatabaseQuery.DirectQuery
+			$wpdb->insert( $table, [
+				'post_id'           => (int) $post_id,
+				'run_id'            => $run_id,
+				'stage'             => 'llm_research',
+				'provider'          => $research_row->provider,
+				'model'             => $research_row->model,
+				'prompt_tokens'     => $amortized_prompt,
+				'completion_tokens' => $amortized_compl,
+				'estimated_cost'    => $amortized_cost,
+				'response_status'   => 'success',
+				'error_message'     => '',
+				'created_at'        => current_time( 'mysql' ),
+			] );
+		}
+
+		// Remove the original unlinked row — it's been replaced by per-article rows.
+		// phpcs:ignore WordPress.DB.DirectDatabaseQuery.DirectQuery
+		$wpdb->delete( $table, [ 'id' => (int) $research_row->id ] );
+
+		PRAutoBlogger_Logger::instance()->info(
+			sprintf(
+				'Amortized LLM research cost $%.4f across %d articles ($%.4f each).',
+				$total_cost,
+				$post_count,
+				$amortized_cost
+			),
+			'cost-tracker'
+		);
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Strip common LLM output artifacts from generated content.
 	 * Removes markdown fences, HTML document wrappers, stray head-level tags.

includes/core/class-source-collector.php

@@ -20,6 +20,24 @@ declare(strict_types=1);
  */
 class PRAutoBlogger_Source_Collector {
 
+	/**
+	 * Pipeline cost tracker — passed to providers that need run_id tagging.
+	 * Null when called outside the pipeline (e.g., manual test collection).
+	 */
+	private ?PRAutoBlogger_Cost_Tracker $cost_tracker = null;
+
+	/**
+	 * Inject the pipeline's cost tracker so source providers can log costs
+	 * with the correct run_id. Without this, provider costs are orphaned.
+	 *
+	 * @param PRAutoBlogger_Cost_Tracker $cost_tracker Pipeline cost tracker with run_id set.
+	 * @return $this
+	 */
+	public function set_cost_tracker( PRAutoBlogger_Cost_Tracker $cost_tracker ): self {
+		$this->cost_tracker = $cost_tracker;
+		return $this;
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Collect data from all enabled source providers and store in database.
 	 *
@@ -219,10 +237,16 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_Source_Collector {
 		}
 
 		if ( 'llm_research' === $source_type ) {
-			return [
+			$config = [
 				'model'  => get_option( 'prautoblogger_research_model', PRAUTOBLOGGER_DEFAULT_ANALYSIS_MODEL ),
 				'prompt' => get_option( 'prautoblogger_research_prompt', '' ),
 			];
+			// Pass the pipeline's cost tracker so research costs get tagged
+			// with the run_id for post-pipeline amortization across articles.
+			if ( null !== $this->cost_tracker ) {
+				$config['cost_tracker'] = $this->cost_tracker;
+			}
+			return $config;
 		}
 
 		return [];

includes/providers/class-llm-research-provider.php

@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_LLM_Research_Provider implements PRAutoBlogger_Source_Provid
 	 *
 	 * Side effects: LLM API call via OpenRouter, cost logging.
 	 *
-	 * @param array{prompt?: string, model?: string} $config Research-specific configuration.
+	 * @param array{prompt?: string, model?: string, cost_tracker?: PRAutoBlogger_Cost_Tracker} $config Research-specific configuration.
 	 * @return PRAutoBlogger_Source_Data[] Array of research findings as source data.
 	 * @throws \RuntimeException On API error after retries.
 	 */
@@ -65,7 +65,9 @@ class PRAutoBlogger_LLM_Research_Provider implements PRAutoBlogger_Source_Provid
 			]
 		);
 
-		$cost_tracker = new PRAutoBlogger_Cost_Tracker();
+		// Use the pipeline's cost tracker if provided (for run_id tagging),
+		// otherwise create a standalone one (backward compat for manual calls).
+		$cost_tracker = $config['cost_tracker'] ?? new PRAutoBlogger_Cost_Tracker();
 		$cost_tracker->log_api_call(
 			null,
 			'llm_research',

prautoblogger.php

@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ declare(strict_types=1);
  * Plugin Name:       PRAutoBlogger
  * Plugin URI:        https://peptiderepo.com/prautoblogger
  * Description:       Monitors social media for trending topics, generates SEO-friendly blog posts using AI, and publishes them on a daily schedule with full cost tracking and self-improvement metrics.
- * Version:           0.5.1
+ * Version:           0.5.2
  * Requires at least: 6.0
  * Requires PHP:      7.4
  * Author:            PeptideRepo
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ if ( ! defined( 'ABSPATH' ) ) {
 | and limits without magic strings.
 */
 
-define( 'PRAUTOBLOGGER_VERSION', '0.5.1' );
+define( 'PRAUTOBLOGGER_VERSION', '0.5.2' );
 define( 'PRAUTOBLOGGER_DB_VERSION', '1.1.0' );
 define( 'PRAUTOBLOGGER_PLUGIN_FILE', __FILE__ );
 define( 'PRAUTOBLOGGER_PLUGIN_DIR', plugin_dir_path( __FILE__ ) );