Molecule Python SDK: Installation and Configuration

Install the Molecule Python SDK via pip or directly from GitHub. Requires Python 3.10 or later. Dependencies: httpx, pynacl, websockets.

The Molecule Python SDK gives you a typed, authenticated client for placing orders, streaming real-time data, and managing portfolio state across prediction market venues. It handles Ed25519 request signing, WebSocket connections, and error mapping so you can focus on your trading logic.

Requirements

The SDK requires Python 3.10 or later. The following dependencies are installed automatically — you do not need to install them separately.

Dependency	Version	Purpose
httpx	>=0.27	HTTP client for all REST requests
pynacl	>=1.5	Ed25519 request signing
websockets	>=12	WebSocket client for streaming feeds

Install from PyPI

Install the latest stable release using pip:

pip install molecule

Install from GitHub (Pre-release)

To install the latest unreleased version directly from the main branch:

pip install "molecule @ git+https://github.com/Molecule-Trading/molecule-python-sdk.git"

Verify Installation

Confirm the package is installed and check the version:

import molecule

print(molecule.__version__)  # 0.1.0

Environment Variables

The SDK reads configuration from environment variables when values are not passed explicitly to the constructor. Use these to keep credentials out of source code.

Variable	Description
MOLECULE_BASE_URL	API base URL. Required if base_url is not passed to the constructor.
MOLECULE_KEY_ID	Trading key ID. Can be passed explicitly to the constructor instead.
MOLECULE_PRIVATE_KEY	Base64-encoded 32-byte Ed25519 seed. Can be passed explicitly.

Store your credentials in a .env file at the root of your project:

MOLECULE_BASE_URL=https://api.molecule.example
MOLECULE_KEY_ID=your-key-id
MOLECULE_PRIVATE_KEY=your-base64-encoded-seed

Load the file before constructing the client using python-dotenv:

from dotenv import load_dotenv
from molecule import Molecule

load_dotenv()

# base_url, key_id, and private_key are read from the environment
client = Molecule()

base_url is always required. Set it via the MOLECULE_BASE_URL environment variable or pass it directly as the base_url argument to the constructor. The SDK raises a ValueError at construction time if neither is provided.