To retrieve available models or versions via the Bedrock API, use the ListFoundationModels API operation. This method returns metadata about all foundation models accessible through Bedrock, including their identifiers, providers (e.g., Anthropic, AI21 Labs), and supported features. You’ll need to authenticate your API requests using AWS credentials and target the Bedrock service endpoint for your region.
First, initialize the Bedrock client using the AWS SDK for your programming language (e.g., Python’s boto3). For example, in Python:
import boto3
client = boto3.client('bedrock', region_name='us-west-2')
response = client.list_foundation_models()
The response includes a modelSummaries array with entries like:
{
"modelId": "anthropic.claude-v2",
"modelName": "Claude",
"providerName": "Anthropic",
"inputModalities": ["TEXT"],
"outputModalities": ["TEXT"],
"customizationsSupported": ["FINE_TUNING"]
}
Each modelId often encodes version information (e.g., claude-v2). To filter results, use optional parameters like byProvider or byOutputModality in the API call.
If you need detailed version information beyond what’s in modelId, use the GetFoundationModel API with a specific modelId. This returns additional metadata, including lifecycle status and any version-specific constraints. Note that model availability depends on your AWS region and account permissions, so ensure your IAM roles grant bedrock:ListFoundationModels access. For CLI users, the equivalent command is aws bedrock list-foundation-models.