By AnthropicLearning Objectives
- Understand what Managed Agents offers and how it differs from Claude Code and Claude Cowork
- Identify the key capabilities of cloud-hosted agent deployment
- Evaluate when to use Managed Agents versus building agents with the Claude Agent SDK
What Are Claude Managed Agents?
Claude Managed Agents is a public beta product from Anthropic that provides composable APIs for building and deploying cloud-hosted AI agents at scale. Where Claude Code and Claude Cowork are desktop agents that run locally, Managed Agents lets organizations deploy persistent, cloud-based AI agents through Anthropic's infrastructure.
The key distinction: with Claude Code or the Agent SDK, you build and host agents yourself. With Managed Agents, Anthropic handles the orchestration, scaling, monitoring, and infrastructure — you define what the agent does, and Anthropic runs it in the cloud.
🎯Tip
Access: Claude Managed Agents is currently in public beta. Available through the Anthropic API. Visit anthropic.com for documentation and access.
How It Fits in Anthropic's Agent Stack
| Product | Runs Where | Built For | You Manage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Your terminal/IDE | Developers | Everything (local agent) |
| Claude Cowork | Your desktop | Knowledge workers | Everything (local agent) |
| Claude Agent SDK | Your infrastructure | Developers building custom agents | Hosting, scaling, monitoring |
| Managed Agents | Anthropic's cloud | Organizations deploying agents at scale | Agent definition only |
Core Capabilities
Composable Agent APIs
Managed Agents provides APIs for defining agents as composable building blocks:
- Define agent behavior — specify tools, instructions, and constraints through the API
- Chain agents together — compose multi-agent workflows where agents hand off to each other
- Persistent state — agents maintain state across sessions without you managing a database
- Automatic scaling — Anthropic handles scaling as demand grows
Cloud-Hosted Execution
Unlike self-hosted agents, Managed Agents runs on Anthropic's infrastructure:
- No server management — no need to provision, scale, or monitor compute resources
- Built-in monitoring — observe agent behavior, track tool usage, and audit decisions
- Reliability — Anthropic manages uptime, failover, and infrastructure maintenance
- Security — enterprise-grade security and data handling through Anthropic's platform
Enterprise Features
- Role-based access — control who can create, modify, and deploy agents
- Audit logging — full trail of agent actions for compliance
- Rate limiting and cost controls — set usage boundaries per agent or team
- Integration hooks — connect agents to internal systems via MCP or custom tools
Use Cases
| Scenario | Why Managed Agents |
|---|---|
| Customer support automation | Deploy persistent agents that handle support tickets 24/7 without managing infrastructure |
| Document processing pipelines | Chain agents for intake, classification, extraction, and routing |
| Internal knowledge assistants | Deploy company-specific agents accessible to all employees |
| Automated research workflows | Agents that continuously monitor sources and produce reports |
| Multi-step approval workflows | Compose agents that gather information, draft proposals, and route for approval |
Strengths
- Zero infrastructure management — Anthropic handles hosting, scaling, and monitoring
- Composable architecture — build complex workflows by chaining simple agent building blocks
- Persistent state — agents maintain context across sessions automatically
- Enterprise-ready — audit logging, access controls, and cost management from the start
- Powered by Claude — access to Fable 5, Opus 5, Sonnet 5, and Haiku 4.5 capabilities
Limitations and Considerations
- Public beta — the product is still maturing; APIs and features may change
- Cloud-only — agents run on Anthropic's infrastructure, not on-premise (important for data sovereignty requirements)
- Pricing not finalized — beta pricing may differ from GA pricing
- Vendor dependency — deeper coupling with Anthropic's platform compared to self-hosted Agent SDK solutions
- Limited customization — less control over execution environment compared to self-hosting
Company Details
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Developer | Anthropic |
| Status | Public Beta |
| Type | Cloud-hosted agent platform |
| Access | Anthropic API |
| Pricing | Beta (contact Anthropic) |
| Website | anthropic.com |
Related Tools
- Claude Opus 5 — Anthropic's current Opus-line model powering these agents
- Claude Agent SDK — Self-hosted agent framework for custom deployments
- Claude Cowork — Desktop agent for knowledge work
- Claude Mythos Preview — Anthropic's most powerful model (invite-only)
Key Takeaways
- Claude Managed Agents is Anthropic's public beta for deploying cloud-hosted AI agents at scale — you define the agent, Anthropic handles infrastructure, scaling, and monitoring
- Composable APIs allow chaining agents into multi-step workflows with persistent state across sessions
- Fills the gap between desktop agents (Claude Code/Cowork) and self-hosted agents (Agent SDK) — ideal for organizations that want agent capabilities without managing infrastructure
- Enterprise features include audit logging, role-based access, and cost controls
- Currently in public beta — APIs and pricing may evolve before general availability
