17. Tools, Skills, Commands and Protocols¶

The capabilities and interfaces that let a model act on the world. Children split into what agents can do (tools: web/file search, code execution, browser, DB, shell, APIs), how capabilities are packaged (skills, commands, function calling), and the wiring standards (MCP, OpenAPI, CLI, SDK). Tools are what make agents more than a chatbot; function calling and MCP are the contract that connects model to tool.

Children¶

tools
web search
file search
code execution
browser automation
database access
shell access
external APIs
skills
commands
function calling
MCP
OpenAPI
CLI
SDK

Agents — what wields these tools
Safety, Security & Governance — tools are the attack surface
Interfaces — how the world reaches in, vs tools reaching out

17. Tools, Skills, Commands and Protocols¶

Children¶

Related¶