Google ADK: Agent Development Kit

Google's code-first framework for building AI agents in Python and TypeScript. Optimized for Gemini with built-in evaluation, multi-agent orchestration, and seamless Google Cloud deployment.

20K+
GitHub Stars
Python + TS
Languages
Medium
Model Lock-in
Moderate
Learning Curve

What is Google ADK?

The Agent Development Kit (ADK) is Google's official framework for building AI agents. Unlike visual builders, ADK takes a code-first approach — define agents, tools, and workflows directly in Python or TypeScript for maximum control and testability.

In March 2026, ADK received a major update adding TypeScript support, the new AgentTeam API for multi-agent coordination, and deeper Vertex AI integration. It's the default choice for teams building on the Google Cloud / Gemini ecosystem.

Core Concepts

🤖

Agents

Code-defined units with instructions, model config, and tool access.

🛠️

Tools

Python/TS functions decorated as tools, automatically exposed to the agent.

👥

AgentTeam

Multi-agent coordination API for specialized agent collaboration.

✅

Evaluation

Built-in testing framework to validate agent behavior before deployment.

Popular Use Cases

Google Workspace Automation

Agents that read Gmail, update Sheets, schedule Calendar events, and manage Drive files.

Enterprise Search

Combine Vertex AI Search with custom agents for intelligent enterprise knowledge retrieval.

Multi-Modal Analysis

Leverage Gemini's vision capabilities for analyzing images, charts, and documents alongside text.

Cloud Operations

Agents that monitor GCP resources, respond to incidents, and optimize infrastructure.

Quick Example

from google.adk import Agent, Tool

@Tool
def search_web(query: str) -> str:
    """Search the web for information."""
    return web_search(query)

@Tool
def analyze_data(csv_path: str, question: str) -> str:
    """Analyze a CSV file and answer questions about it."""
    df = pd.read_csv(csv_path)
    return analyze(df, question)

agent = Agent(
    model="gemini-2.5-pro",
    tools=[search_web, analyze_data],
    instruction="You are a data research assistant."
)

response = agent.run("Analyze sales.csv and compare with industry trends")
📊

Google ADK vs Other Frameworks

See how Google ADK compares to LangGraph, CrewAI, OpenClaw, and 9 other frameworks in our 2026 comparison.

Compare Frameworks

🔧

OpenAI Agents SDK

GPT-powered agent framework

🔗

LangGraph

Graph-based workflows

👥

CrewAI

Multi-agent collaboration

Explore More

Google ADK Agent Page

Detailed agent capabilities review

Best AI Agent Frameworks

Ranked framework comparison

How to Build an AI Agent

10-step guide from zero to production

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