What is the Anthropic Agent SDK?
Anthropic's official Python framework for building production-grade AI agents on Claude. Provides tool calls, conversation memory, multi-turn orchestration, and safety guardrails.
TL;DR: Anthropic's official agent framework. Structured tool calls + conversation memory + agent handoff + safety guardrails. The underlying architecture of Claude Code. Production-ready.
Best for: Developers building production-grade autonomous Claude agents.
Core Features
1. Tool Calls
Define tools with Python decorators; types inferred automatically.
2. Agent Handoff
Hand off tasks between specialized agents.
3. Streaming
Real-time text and tool-call events.
4. Safety Guardrails
Turn limits, tool allowlists, output-length controls.
FAQ
Q: Relationship to Claude Code? A: Claude Code is built on the Agent SDK. The SDK is the foundation for building custom agent systems.