# AutoGen (AG2)

> A multi-agent conversation framework where agents collaborate via message-passing, with group chat and code execution.

AutoGen pioneered the conversational multi-agent pattern: agents (and humans) collaborate by passing messages, including group chats and a code-executing agent. It originated at Microsoft Research; AG2 is the community-driven fork that continues that lineage. Both are open source.

Website: https://microsoft.github.io/autogen/

AutoGen is an open-source framework that models multi-agent systems as **conversations**: specialized agents — and optionally a human — exchange messages to solve a task together, including multi-agent **group chats** and a built-in code-executing agent that can write and run code in a loop. It helped popularize the conversational multi-agent pattern that many later frameworks built on.

It is aimed at developers and researchers prototyping collaborative or self-correcting agent systems. A note on naming: AutoGen originated at Microsoft Research; **AG2** is the community-driven fork (formerly AutoGen) that carries the project forward, so you'll see both names in the ecosystem.

## Highlights

- **Conversable agents** — agents communicate by passing messages, composing into multi-agent solutions.
- **Group chat** — orchestrate several agents (and a human) in a shared conversation with a manager directing turns.
- **Code execution** — a built-in executor agent writes and runs code, enabling generate-run-debug loops.
- **Human-in-the-loop** — insert a human agent at any point in the conversation.
- **Model-flexible** — works across LLM providers.

## In an AI-assisted workflow

A common pattern is an assistant agent that proposes code and a user-proxy/executor agent that runs it and feeds back results, iterating until tests pass — collaboration as a conversation rather than a hardcoded pipeline.

> [!NOTE]
> Check which distribution you're adopting — Microsoft's `autogen` or the community `ag2` fork — since APIs and momentum can differ. Both are open source under permissive licenses.

## Good to know

AutoGen/AG2 is open source and free; you bring your own model provider. Its conversational model is flexible and great for prototyping, but for production you may want the explicit control of [LangGraph](/tools/langgraph) or the structured roles of [CrewAI](/tools/crewai) — see [the framework comparison](/guides/concepts/agent-frameworks-2026).

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_Source: https://agentscamp.com/tools/autogen — Tool on AgentsCamp._