Bug Report: Kimi/Moonshot "Rate Limit" Error Masking Insufficient Funds

Environment

• OpenClaw Version: 2026.3.8
• OS: macOS
• Plugin: kimi-claw (auto-loaded)
• Provider: Moonshot (Kimi)

Problem Summary

When Kimi/Moonshot API account balance reaches zero, the API returns a 429 Rate Limit Reached error instead of a clear billing/insufficient funds message. OpenClaw interprets this literally, triggering a cascading failure that locks the UI and prevents model switching.

Symptoms

• UI completely frozen with repeated error: ⚠️ API rate limit reached. Please try again later.
• Cannot send messages in chat
• Cannot switch models via chat commands (model=...)
• Background slug-gen task infinitely retries, spamming terminal
• Session locked to broken provider

Root Cause

1. Error Misclassification: Moonshot API returns 429 for billing issues, not actual rate limiting
2. Infinite Retry Loop: slug-gen background task keeps hitting API on failure
3. Command Routing Trap: Model switch commands route through the failing provider

Reproduction Steps

1. Exhaust Kimi/Moonshot API credits
2. Attempt any chat message or command
3. Observe 429 error loop
4. Try to switch models via chat — fails

Expected Behavior

• Clear error: "Insufficient API credits" or "Billing issue"
• Graceful degradation: pause background tasks after N failures
• Emergency bypass: allow model switching even when current provider is down

Actual Behavior

• Misleading "rate limit" error
• Infinite retry loop
• Complete UI lockout

Workaround

Reload funds into Kimi account, or force model switch via control UI dropdown (bypasses chat parser).

Proposed Fixes

1. Better Error Parsing (kimi-claw)

Parse Moonshot error responses for billing-specific codes/messages and surface accurate error to user.

2. Failsafe for Background Tasks

slug-gen retry policy:
- Max 3 attempts
- Exponential backoff
- After max retries: pause + notify, don't loop

3. Emergency Model Override

Route /model commands through control layer, not through the active AI provider. Critical for provider outages.

Impact

• Severity: High — complete functionality loss
• User Experience: Hours of confusion troubleshooting "rate limits"
• Frequency: Any user with auto-reload disabled or payment issues

Reported by: Coach O via Clawd