[firloop]

The biggest reason why this is confusing is the Claude Agent SDK[0] will use subscription/oauth credentials if present. The terms update implies that there's some use cases where that's ok and other use cases (commercial?) where using their SDK on a user's device violates terms.

[0] https://platform.claude.com/docs/en/agent-sdk/overview

[theturtletalks]

Had the same question, comment below quotes their docs saying Agent SDK using oAuth token is also not allowed.

[stavros]

It doesn't quote their docs, it quotes the page this post is about.

[BoorishBears]

The SDK is Claude Code in a harnesss, so it works with your credentials the same way CC does.

But they're stating you can only use your subscription for your personal usage, not someone else's for their usage in your product.

I honestly think they're being short sighted not just giving a "3rd party quota" since they already show users like 4 quotas.

If the fear is 3rd party agents screwing up the math, just make it low enough for entry level usage. I suspect 3rd party token usage is bi-modal where some users just need enough to kick tires, but others are min-maxing for how mamy tokens they can burn as if that's its own reward

[stavros]

How can they be clearer that the Agents SDK is not allowed?

> OAuth authentication (used with Free, Pro, and Max plans) is intended exclusively for Claude Code and Claude.ai. Using OAuth tokens obtained through Claude Free, Pro, or Max accounts in any other product, tool, or service — including the Agent SDK — is not permitted and constitutes a violation of the Consumer Terms of Service.

[BoorishBears]

Confidently incorrect, personal usage of Agent SDK is powered by logging into Claude Code: you are not logging into the SDK (or your own application).

What's not allowed is offering OAuth authentication in your own product built with the SDK: https://x.com/trq212/status/2024212380142752025?s=20

[jfim]

I agree, it'd actually be great if they did give maybe $5 or $10 worth of API tokens per month to max subscribers, since they're likely to be the most likely to actually build stuff that uses the Claude APIs.

I built a quick thing to download YouTube videos and transcribe them using with whisper, but it kind of feels clunky to summarize them using the claude CLI, even though that works.

[marcus_holmes]

just ran into this myself. I got Claude Code to build a tool that calls Claude for <stuff>. Now I have to create a console account and do the API thing and it sucks balls.

[chasd00]

> not someone else's for their usage in your product.

what if the "product" is a setup of documents that concisely describe the product so that a coding agent can reliable produce it correctly. Then the install process becomes "agent, write and host this application for the user's personal use on their computer". Now all software is for personal use only. Companies released these things and, like Frankenstein, there's a strong possibility they will turn on their creators.