Build Interactive ML Demos with Gradio

Gradio

When to Use

Use this skill when a user wants a Gradio demo, UI prototype, or Python-based ML interface.

Gradio is a Python library for building interactive web UIs and ML demos. This skill covers the core API, patterns, and examples.

Guides

Detailed guides on specific topics (read these when relevant):

• Quickstart
• The Interface Class
• Blocks and Event Listeners
• Controlling Layout
• More Blocks Features
• Custom CSS and JS
• Streaming Outputs
• Streaming Inputs
• Sharing Your App
• Custom HTML Components
• Getting Started with the Python Client
• Getting Started with the JS Client

Core Patterns

Interface (high-level): wraps a function with input/output components.

import gradio as gr

def greet(name):
    return f"Hello {name}!"

gr.Interface(fn=greet, inputs="text", outputs="text").launch()

Blocks (low-level): flexible layout with explicit event wiring.

import gradio as gr

with gr.Blocks() as demo:
    name = gr.Textbox(label="Name")
    output = gr.Textbox(label="Greeting")
    btn = gr.Button("Greet")
    btn.click(fn=lambda n: f"Hello {n}!", inputs=name, outputs=output)

demo.launch()

ChatInterface: high-level wrapper for chatbot UIs.

import gradio as gr

def respond(message, history):
    return f"You said: {message}"

gr.ChatInterface(fn=respond).launch()

Key Component Signatures

Textbox(value: str | I18nData | Callable | None = None, type: Literal['text', 'password', 'email'] = "text", lines: int = 1, max_lines: int | None = None, placeholder: str | I18nData | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, info: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, autofocus: bool = False, autoscroll: bool = True, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", text_align: Literal['left', 'right'] | None = None, rtl: bool = False, buttons: list[Literal['copy'] | Button] | None = None, max_length: int | None = None, submit_btn: str | bool | None = False, stop_btn: str | bool | None = False, html_attributes: InputHTMLAttributes | None = None)

Creates a textarea for user to enter string input or display string output..

Number(value: float | Callable | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, placeholder: str | I18nData | None = None, info: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", buttons: list[Button] | None = None, precision: int | None = None, minimum: float | None = None, maximum: float | None = None, step: float = 1)

Creates a numeric field for user to enter numbers as input or display numeric output..

Slider(minimum: float = 0, maximum: float = 100, value: float | Callable | None = None, step: float | None = None, precision: int | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, info: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", randomize: bool = False, buttons: list[Literal['reset']] | None = None)

Creates a slider that ranges from {minimum} to {maximum} with a step size of {step}..

Checkbox(value: bool | Callable = False, label: str | I18nData | None = None, info: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", buttons: list[Button] | None = None)

Creates a checkbox that can be set to True or False.

Dropdown(choices: Sequence[str | int | float | tuple[str, str | int | float]] | None = None, value: str | int | float | Sequence[str | int | float] | Callable | DefaultValue | None = DefaultValue(), type: Literal['value', 'index'] = "value", multiselect: bool | None = None, allow_custom_value: bool = False, max_choices: int | None = None, filterable: bool = True, label: str | I18nData | None = None, info: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", buttons: list[Button] | None = None)

Creates a dropdown of choices from which a single entry or multiple entries can be selected (as an input component) or displayed (as an output component)..

Radio(choices: Sequence[str | int | float | tuple[str, str | int | float]] | None = None, value: str | int | float | Callable | None = None, type: Literal['value', 'index'] = "value", label: str | I18nData | None = None, info: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", rtl: bool = False, buttons: list[Button] | None = None)

Creates a set of (string or numeric type) radio buttons of which only one can be selected..

Image(value: str | PIL.Image.Image | np.ndarray | Callable | None = None, format: str = "webp", height: int | str | None = None, width: int | str | None = None, image_mode: Literal['1', 'L', 'P', 'RGB', 'RGBA', 'CMYK', 'YCbCr', 'LAB', 'HSV', 'I', 'F'] | None = "RGB", sources: list[Literal['upload', 'webcam', 'clipboard']] | Literal['upload', 'webcam', 'clipboard'] | None = None, type: Literal['numpy', 'pil', 'filepath'] = "numpy", label: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, buttons: list[Literal['download', 'share', 'fullscreen'] | Button] | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, streaming: bool = False, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", webcam_options: WebcamOptions | None = None, placeholder: str | None = None, watermark: WatermarkOptions | None = None)

Creates an image component that can be used to upload images (as an input) or display images (as an output)..

Audio(value: str | Path | tuple[int, np.ndarray] | Callable | None = None, sources: list[Literal['upload', 'microphone']] | Literal['upload', 'microphone'] | None = None, type: Literal['numpy', 'filepath'] = "numpy", label: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, streaming: bool = False, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", format: Literal['wav', 'mp3'] | None = None, autoplay: bool = False, editable: bool = True, buttons: list[Literal['download', 'share'] | Button] | None = None, waveform_options: WaveformOptions | dict | None = None, loop: bool = False, recording: bool = False, subtitles: str | Path | list[dict[str, Any]] | None = None, playback_position: float = 0)

Creates an audio component that can be used to upload/record audio (as an input) or display audio (as an output)..

Video(value: str | Path | Callable | None = None, format: str | None = None, sources: list[Literal['upload', 'webcam']] | Literal['upload', 'webcam'] | None = None, height: int | str | None = None, width: int | str | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", webcam_options: WebcamOptions | None = None, include_audio: bool | None = None, autoplay: bool = False, buttons: list[Literal['download', 'share'] | Button] | None = None, loop: bool = False, streaming: bool = False, watermark: WatermarkOptions | None = None, subtitles: str | Path | list[dict[str, Any]] | None = None, playback_position: float = 0)

Creates a video component that can be used to upload/record videos (as an input) or display videos (as an output).

File(value: str | list[str] | Callable | None = None, file_count: Literal['single', 'multiple', 'directory'] = "single", file_types: list[str] | None = None, type: Literal['filepath', 'binary'] = "filepath", label: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, height: int | str | float | None = None, interactive: bool | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", allow_reordering: bool = False, buttons: list[Button] | None = None)

Creates a file component that allows uploading one or more generic files (when used as an input) or displaying generic files or URLs for download (as output).

Chatbot(value: list[MessageDict | Message] | Callable | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, container: bool = True, scale: int | None = None, min_width: int = 160, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, autoscroll: bool = True, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", height: int | str | None = 400, resizable: bool = False, max_height: int | str | None = None, min_height: int | str | None = None, editable: Literal['user', 'all'] | None = None, latex_delimiters: list[dict[str, str | bool]] | None = None, rtl: bool = False, buttons: list[Literal['share', 'copy', 'copy_all'] | Button] | None = None, watermark: str | None = None, avatar_images: tuple[str | Path | None, str | Path | None] | None = None, sanitize_html: bool = True, render_markdown: bool = True, feedback_options: list[str] | tuple[str, ...] | None = ('Like', 'Dislike'), feedback_value: Sequence[str | None] | None = None, line_breaks: bool = True, layout: Literal['panel', 'bubble'] | None = None, placeholder: str | None = None, examples: list[ExampleMessage] | None = None, allow_file_downloads: <class 'inspect._empty'> = True, group_consecutive_messages: bool = True, allow_tags: list[str] | bool = True, reasoning_tags: list[tuple[str, str]] | None = None, like_user_message: bool = False)

Creates a chatbot that displays user-submitted messages and responses.

Button(value: str | I18nData | Callable = "Run", every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, variant: Literal['primary', 'secondary', 'stop', 'huggingface'] = "secondary", size: Literal['sm', 'md', 'lg'] = "lg", icon: str | Path | None = None, link: str | None = None, link_target: Literal['_self', '_blank', '_parent', '_top'] = "_self", visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, interactive: bool = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", scale: int | None = None, min_width: int | None = None)

Creates a button that can be assigned arbitrary .click() events.

Markdown(value: str | I18nData | Callable | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool | None = None, rtl: bool = False, latex_delimiters: list[dict[str, str | bool]] | None = None, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", sanitize_html: bool = True, line_breaks: bool = False, header_links: bool = False, height: int | str | None = None, max_height: int | str | None = None, min_height: int | str | None = None, buttons: list[Literal['copy']] | None = None, container: bool = False, padding: bool = False)

Used to render arbitrary Markdown output.

HTML(value: Any | Callable | None = None, label: str | I18nData | None = None, html_template: str = "${value}", css_template: str = "", js_on_load: str | None = "element.addEventListener('click', function() { trigger('click') });", apply_default_css: bool = True, every: Timer | float | None = None, inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None, show_label: bool = False, visible: bool | Literal['hidden'] = True, elem_id: str | None = None, elem_classes: list[str] | str | None = None, render: bool = True, key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None, preserved_by_key: list[str] | str | None = "value", min_height: int | None = None, max_height: int | None = None, container: bool = False, padding: bool = False, autoscroll: bool = False, buttons: list[Button] | None = None, server_functions: list[Callable] | None = None, props: Any)

Creates a component with arbitrary HTML.

Custom HTML Components

If a task requires significant customization of an existing component or a component that doesn't exist in Gradio, you can create one with gr.HTML. It supports html_template (with ${} JS expressions and {{}} Handlebars syntax), css_template for scoped styles, and js_on_load for interactivity - where props.value updates the component value and trigger('event_name') fires Gradio events. For reuse, subclass gr.HTML and define api_info() for API/MCP support. See the full guide.

Here's an example that shows how to create and use these kinds of components:

import gradio as gr

class StarRating(gr.HTML):
    def __init__(self, label, value=0, **kwargs):
        html_template = """
        <h2>${label} rating:</h2>
        ${Array.from({length: 5}, (_, i) => `<img class='${i < value ? '' : 'faded'}' src='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Award-star-gold-3d.svg'>`).join('')}
        """
        css_template = """
            img { height: 50px; display: inline-block; cursor: pointer; }
            .faded { filter: grayscale(100%); opacity: 0.3; }
        """
        js_on_load = """
            const imgs = element.querySelectorAll('img');
            imgs.forEach((img, index) => {
                img.addEventListener('click', () => {
                    props.value = index + 1;
                });
            });
        """
        super().__init__(value=value, label=label, html_template=html_template, css_template=css_template, js_on_load=js_on_load, **kwargs)

    def api_info(self):
        return {"type": "integer", "minimum": 0, "maximum": 5}


with gr.Blocks() as demo:
    gr.Markdown("# Restaurant Review")
    food_rating = StarRating(label="Food", value=3)
    service_rating = StarRating(label="Service", value=3)
    ambience_rating = StarRating(label="Ambience", value=3)
    average_btn = gr.Button("Calculate Average Rating")
    rating_output = StarRating(label="Average", value=3)
    def calculate_average(food, service, ambience):
        return round((food + service + ambience) / 3)
    average_btn.click(
        fn=calculate_average,
        inputs=[food_rating, service_rating, ambience_rating],
        outputs=rating_output
    )

demo.launch()

Event Listeners

All event listeners share the same signature:

component.event_name(
    fn: Callable | None | Literal["decorator"] = "decorator",
    inputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None,
    outputs: Component | Sequence[Component] | set[Component] | None = None,
    api_name: str | None = None,
    api_description: str | None | Literal[False] = None,
    scroll_to_output: bool = False,
    show_progress: Literal["full", "minimal", "hidden"] = "full",
    show_progress_on: Component | Sequence[Component] | None = None,
    queue: bool = True,
    batch: bool = False,
    max_batch_size: int = 4,
    preprocess: bool = True,
    postprocess: bool = True,
    cancels: dict[str, Any] | list[dict[str, Any]] | None = None,
    trigger_mode: Literal["once", "multiple", "always_last"] | None = None,
    js: str | Literal[True] | None = None,
    concurrency_limit: int | None | Literal["default"] = "default",
    concurrency_id: str | None = None,
    api_visibility: Literal["public", "private", "undocumented"] = "public",
    time_limit: int | None = None,
    stream_every: float = 0.5,
    key: int | str | tuple[int | str, ...] | None = None,
    validator: Callable | None = None,
) -> Dependency

Supported events per component:

• AnnotatedImage: select
• Audio: stream, change, clear, play, pause, stop, pause, start_recording, pause_recording, stop_recording, upload, input
• BarPlot: select, double_click
• BrowserState: change
• Button: click
• Chatbot: change, select, like, retry, undo, example_select, option_select, clear, copy, edit
• Checkbox: change, input, select
• CheckboxGroup: change, input, select
• ClearButton: click
• Code: change, input, focus, blur
• ColorPicker: change, input, submit, focus, blur
• Dataframe: change, input, select, edit
• Dataset: click, select
• DateTime: change, submit
• DeepLinkButton: click
• Dialogue: change, input, submit
• DownloadButton: click
• Dropdown: change, input, select, focus, blur, key_up
• DuplicateButton: click
• File: change, select, clear, upload, delete, download
• FileExplorer: change, input, select
• Gallery: select, upload, change, delete, preview_close, preview_open
• HTML: change, input, click, double_click, submit, stop, edit, clear, play, pause, end, start_recording, pause_recording, stop_recording, focus, blur, upload, release, select, stream, like, example_select, option_select, load, key_up, apply, delete, tick, undo, retry, expand, collapse, download, copy
• HighlightedText: change, select
• Image: clear, change, stream, select, upload, input
• ImageEditor: clear, change, input, select, upload, apply
• ImageSlider: clear, change, stream, select, upload, input
• JSON: change
• Label: change, select
• LinePlot: select, double_click
• LoginButton: click
• Markdown: change, copy
• Model3D: change, upload, edit, clear
• MultimodalTextbox: change, input, select, submit, focus, blur, stop
• Navbar: change
• Number: change, input, submit, focus, blur
• ParamViewer: change, upload
• Plot: change
• Radio: select, change, input
• ScatterPlot: select, double_click
• SimpleImage: clear, change, upload
• Slider: change, input, release
• State: change
• Textbox: change, input, select, submit, focus, blur, stop, copy
• Timer: tick
• UploadButton: click, upload
• Video: change, clear, start_recording, stop_recording, stop, play, pause, end, upload, input

Prediction CLI

The gradio CLI includes info and predict commands for interacting with Gradio apps programmatically. These are especially useful for coding agents that need to use Spaces in their workflows.

gradio info - Discover endpoints and parameters

gradio info <space_id_or_url>

Returns a JSON payload describing all endpoints, their parameters (with types and defaults), and return values.

gradio info gradio/calculator
# {
#   "/predict": {
#     "parameters": [
#       {"name": "num1", "required": true, "default": null, "type": {"type": "number"}},
#       {"name": "operation", "required": true, "default": null, "type": {"enum": ["add", "subtract", "multiply", "divide"], "type": "string"}},
#       {"name": "num2", "required": true, "default": null, "type": {"type": "number"}}
#     ],
#     "returns": [{"name": "output", "type": {"type": "number"}}],
#     "description": ""
#   }
# }

File-type parameters show "type": "filepath" with instructions to include "meta": {"_type": "gradio.FileData"} - this signals the file will be uploaded to the remote server.

gradio predict - Send predictions

gradio predict <space_id_or_url> <endpoint> <json_payload>

Returns a JSON object with named output keys.

# Simple numeric prediction
gradio predict gradio/calculator /predict '{"num1": 5, "operation": "multiply", "num2": 3}'
# {"output": 15}

# Image generation
gradio predict black-forest-labs/FLUX.2-dev /infer '{"prompt": "A majestic dragon"}'
# {"Result": "/tmp/gradio/.../image.webp", "Seed": 1117868604}

# File upload (must include meta key)
gradio predict gradio/image_mod /predict '{"image": {"path": "/path/to/image.png", "meta": {"_type": "gradio.FileData"}}}'
# {"output": "/tmp/gradio/.../output.png"}

Both commands accept --token for accessing private Spaces.

Additional Reference

• End-to-End Examples - complete working apps

Limitations

• Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.
• Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.
• Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.