AI Agent Development Playbook 2026

Description

A practical route from prototype to controlled delivery

Build a clear engineering plan for an AI agent that can retrieve evidence, propose actions and operate within explicit limits. The AI Agent Development Playbook 2026 follows a worked internal support-triage assistant from task definition through tools, approvals, evaluation and deployment planning.

Edition 1.0: 43 pages, 40 focused chapters, approximately 11,600 words and 12 original vector infographics. Published 27 October 2026. English-language PDF with clickable contents and bookmarks.

Read the free 7-page sample (PDF)

What is included

• Illustrated playbook PDF: architecture decisions, tool contracts, retrieval and memory, identity, prompt injection, exact-payload approval, durable state, retries and uncertain outcomes.
• Evaluation and operations guidance: task rubrics, provider-adapter boundaries, illustrative cost arithmetic, tracing, staged rollout, incident response and readiness reviews.
• Downloadable Python reference kit: original offline code, 22 automated boundary tests, editable worksheets, synthetic evaluation cases and a provider-integration planning guide.

Follow one worked project

The example assistant searches tenant-scoped knowledge, produces a supported draft and proposes an internal ticket note. The teaching runtime demonstrates strict decision validation, bounded execution, citation membership, payload-bound approval and an idempotent local SQLite write.

Who it is for

Developers and technical leads who understand basic Python, JSON and HTTP and want a structured implementation and review process. No specific agent framework is required.

Requirements and scope

Use any PDF reader for the handbook. The reference kit requires Python 3.11 or later and uses only the standard library. It runs without API keys, external packages or network calls.

The supplied model decisions are deterministic fixtures. Live model inference, semantic retrieval, web authentication, MCP connections, remote ticket writes and a hosted deployment are extensions you implement and evaluate in your own environment. The package is educational engineering material; it does not promise production readiness, certification or business results. Illustrative organizations, tasks and calculations are clearly labelled.

Delivery and use

This is a digital product with two files: the playbook PDF and the reference-kit ZIP. Download access is granted through WooCommerce after confirmed payment; no physical item is shipped. If you use a customer account, eligible files also appear in My Account → Downloads.

The PDF and artwork are for purchaser personal and internal business use. The original example code and worksheets may be used and modified in your own projects, including commercial projects, under the permission in the kit. Redistribution or resale of the playbook or complete package is not included. Store purchase terms continue to apply.

For file-access help, contact [email protected] with your order number.