Environment:Openai Openai agents python Python 3 9 Runtime

Knowledge Sources	openai-agents-python PyPI openai-agents
Domains	Infrastructure, Python
Last Updated	2026-02-11 14:00 GMT

Overview

Python 3.9+ environment with the OpenAI Agents SDK core dependencies: openai, pydantic, griffe, typing-extensions, and requests.

Description

This environment provides the base runtime for the OpenAI Agents SDK. It requires Python 3.9 or higher and includes the core dependency set that enables agent definition, execution, streaming, guardrails, handoffs, and tracing. The SDK uses dataclass slots conditionally based on Python version (3.10+ gets slots for better memory). MCP support is only available on Python 3.10+.

Usage

Use this environment for any workflow involving the OpenAI Agents SDK. It is the mandatory prerequisite for all agent construction, runner invocation, tool execution, guardrail attachment, and result extraction operations.

System Requirements

Category	Requirement	Notes
OS	Any (OS Independent)	Linux, macOS, Windows all supported
Python	>= 3.9	Supports 3.9, 3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 3.13, 3.14
Disk	Minimal	No large model downloads; SDK is lightweight

Dependencies

System Packages

No system-level packages required for the core SDK

Python Packages

`openai` >= 2.9.0, < 3
`pydantic` >= 2.12.3, < 3
`griffe` >= 1.5.6, < 2
`typing-extensions` >= 4.12.2, < 5
`requests` >= 2.0, < 3
`types-requests` >= 2.0, < 3
`mcp` >= 1.19.0, < 2 (Python 3.10+ only)

Credentials

The following environment variables must be set:

`OPENAI_API_KEY`: OpenAI API key for model invocation and tracing export. Can alternatively be passed programmatically via `set_api_key()`.

Quick Install

pip install openai-agents

Code Evidence

Python version compatibility from `pyproject.toml:6`:

requires-python = ">=3.9"

Dataclass slots conditional on Python version from `editor.py:12`:

_DATACLASS_KWARGS = {"slots": True} if sys.version_info >= (3, 10) else {}

MCP conditional on Python 3.10+ from `pyproject.toml:16`:

"mcp>=1.19.0, <2; python_version >= '3.10'",

Python 3.9 compatibility workaround from `realtime/openai_realtime.py:250-252`:

# Note: Avoid a module-level union alias for Python 3.9 compatibility.
# Using a union at runtime (e.g., A | B) in a type alias triggers evaluation
# during import on 3.9. We instead inline the union in annotations below.

Common Errors

Error Message	Cause	Solution
`ImportError: mcp`	MCP requires Python 3.10+	Upgrade to Python 3.10 or higher
`RuntimeError: AgentRunner.run_sync() cannot be called when an event loop is already running`	Calling `run_sync()` from async context	Use `await Runner.run()` instead in async code
`OPENAI_API_KEY is not set, skipping trace export`	Missing API key	Set `OPENAI_API_KEY` env var or call `set_api_key()`

Compatibility Notes

Python 3.9: Fully supported but MCP features are unavailable. PEP 604 union syntax (`A | B`) cannot be used in type aliases at module level.
Python 3.10+: Full feature support including MCP servers. Dataclass `slots=True` enabled for better memory efficiency.
Python 3.11+: Native `ExceptionGroup` used; on 3.10 the `exceptiongroup` backport is imported.

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