diff --git a/litellm/utils.py b/litellm/utils.py
index 046c5479ab..4932d9d69e 100644
--- a/litellm/utils.py
+++ b/litellm/utils.py
@@ -931,7 +931,7 @@ def get_optional_params(  # use the openai defaults
         return optional_params
     return optional_params
 
-def get_llm_provider(model: str, custom_llm_provider: str = ""):
+def get_llm_provider(model: str, custom_llm_provider: Optional[str] = None):
     try:
         # check if llm provider provided
         if custom_llm_provider:
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 92abc5df9c..876d9a605b 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [tool.poetry]
 name = "litellm"
-version = "0.1.602"
+version = "0.1.603"
 description = "Library to easily interface with LLM API providers"
 authors = ["BerriAI"]
 license = "MIT License"