AgentCore components and boundaries
AgentCore does not require an application to adopt every component at once. Components compose through explicit resources and call boundaries, so an application can start with one capability and add state, tools, and managed execution later.
Component responsibilities
| Component | Owns | Does not own |
|---|---|---|
| TokenHub Gateway | Model access, protocol adaptation, token metering, and call governance | Durable agent state or tool execution environments |
| LTM | Cross-session state, derived records, and context reads | Model routing or the agent loop |
| Tool Gateway | A unified access and authorization boundary for tools and external services | Tool business logic or the model itself |
| Managed Chat | Hosted model calls and memory orchestration for one conversation | A general-purpose Agent Runtime |
| Agent API | Stable agent, session, and event invocation | A particular model vendor implementation |
| Runtime | Agent execution, isolation, scaling, and runtime telemetry | Durable state storage or a model catalog |
Suggested composition order
- Call models through TokenHub and validate the workflow in the application's own agent loop.
- Add LTM for cross-session state and define Project, Environment, Space, and Actor boundaries.
- Add Tool Gateway or an application-owned tool layer when the agent needs external services.
- Move invocation and execution into Agent API and Runtime after their contracts stabilize.
Access surfaces
- Public API: the application owns the agent loop and composes TokenHub, LTM, and tools.
- Managed Chat: the platform manages model calls and memory behavior for one conversation.
- CLI + Skills: local agents use reusable Turing capabilities.
- Developer Platform: configure, validate, and observe capabilities within Project and Environment boundaries.
Boundary principles
- TokenHub Gateway is an AgentCore model-access component, but TokenHub can also be used independently.
- Durable LTM state is separate from temporary Runtime session state.
- Tool Gateway is an access boundary, not the tool, Agent API, or Runtime.
- Agent API and Runtime are not current availability commitments until their contracts are stable.