Add Python Claude Agent SDK Sample

[msftairaamane]

Add Python Claude Agent SDK Sample

Summary

This PR adds a new sample agent implementation using Anthropic's Claude Agent SDK with extended thinking capabilities, providing an alternative AI framework option alongside the existing samples.

• ✅ Claude Agent SDK Integration - Uses claude-sonnet-4-20250514 with extended thinking
• ✅ Built-in Tools - Read, Write, WebSearch, Bash, Grep (no MCP setup yet)
• ✅ Notification Support - Full @mention handling from Outlook, Word, and Teams
• ✅ Observability Support
• ✅ Dual Authentication - Anonymous mode for testing, agentic mode for production
• ✅ Extended Thinking - Transparency into AI reasoning process

Files Added

Core: agent.py, host_agent_server.py, start_with_generic_host.py, agent_interface.py, local_authentication_options.py, observability_helpers.py, token_cache.py

Docs: README.md, AGENT-CODE-WALKTHROUGH.md, PARITY_ANALYSIS.md, NOTIFICATION_IMPLEMENTATION.md

Config: pyproject.toml, .env.template, ToolingManifest.json

Quick Start

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code && claude login
cp .env.template .env  # Add ANTHROPIC_API_KEY
uv venv && uv pip install -e .
uv run python start_with_generic_host.py

Testing

• ✅ Server starts on http://localhost:3978
• ✅ Extended thinking visible in responses
• ✅ Notifications route correctly (both channels)
• ✅ Built-in tools work (Read, Write, WebSearch, Bash, Grep)

Breaking Changes

None - new sample addition.

Future Work

• P0: MCP support for Mail/Calendar/SharePoint tools
• P1: Auto-instrumentation when SDK supports it
• P2: Adaptive cards, response streaming

[pontemonti]

Make sure you add a workflow so that this goes through build validation whenever changes are made to the sample folder.

[nikhilNava]

can you please review this section on observability certification?
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-agent-365/developer/observability?tabs=python#validate-for-store-publishing
Please post the console output for easy verification.
matgupta@microsoft.com (PM)- Requires all the official sample apps to meet the above requirement.

[JoanBency]

can you please review this section on observability certification? https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-agent-365/developer/observability?tabs=python#validate-for-store-publishing Please post the console output for easy verification. matgupta@microsoft.com (PM)- Requires all the official sample apps to meet the above requirement.

Thanks for flagging this and for sharing the link. I agree that the observability certification requirements (including console output for verification and the additional attributes needed for store publishing) are important.

For this PR, we’re keeping the current implementation as-is, since it relies on the existing observability helper and doesn’t yet follow the SDK-based approach or fully meet the store certification requirements. We already anticipate a broader change here — moving to the observability SDK and aligning with all publishing requirements — and that work is planned to be handled in a separate follow-up PR so it can be addressed holistically.

Given that, I’d like to defer these specific certification-related changes to that follow-up work rather than partially addressing them here. Please let me know if that works for you.