RFC: Dependency Layering

Status: Deferred

Problem

pip install agentica currently installs both SDK core dependencies and product defaults needed by CLI and DeepAgent. This preserves the one-command experience, but light SDK users also receive terminal UI, crawler, parser, and product-surface dependencies they may not need.

Current Decision

Keep the current dependency set for v1.4.x. The CLI and DeepAgent must remain usable after a plain pip install agentica, and past attempts to move crawler dependencies into extras caused the default CLI path to crash.

Candidate Future Shape

agentica-core
    Agent / Runner / RunConfig / Tool / Model / RunResponse

agentica[workspace]
    Workspace / memory files / skills parsing

agentica[cli]
    prompt-toolkit / rich / DeepAgent product preset / builtin product tools

agentica[gateway]
    FastAPI service / channels / scheduled daily tasks

agentica[tools-*]
    Search / browser / research / media / finance tool bundles

Migration Constraints

• Do not break agentica CLI for existing users.
• Do not make DeepAgent() crash after plain installation.
• Keep Agent and custom tool users on the smallest stable import path possible.
• Any split must include tests that install the minimal package and verify imports for Agent, RunConfig, Tool, and core providers.
• Any split must include tests that install the CLI extra and verify agentica --query can construct a DeepAgent with builtin tools.

Recommendation

Do not split packages in this PR. First finish API layering documentation, daily task failure visibility, and preset boundaries. Revisit this RFC when preparing a major version or when packaging telemetry shows dependency conflicts from light SDK users.