
langchain
Framework for building LLM-powered applications with agents, chains, and RAG. Supports multiple providers (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google), 500+ integrations, ReAct agents, tool calling, memory management, and vector store retrieval. Use for building chatbots, question-answering systems, autonomous agents, or RAG applications. Best for rapid prototyping and production deployments.
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Install
Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.
npx skills add https://github.com/orchestra-research/ai-research-skills --skill langchain- 01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
- 02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads langchain automatically when relevant.
- 03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.
SKILL.md
The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.
LangChain - Build LLM Applications with Agents & RAG
The most popular framework for building LLM-powered applications.
When to use LangChain
Use LangChain when:
- Building agents with tool calling and reasoning (ReAct pattern)
- Implementing RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) pipelines
- Need to swap LLM providers easily (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google)
- Creating chatbots with conversation memory
- Rapid prototyping of LLM applications
- Production deployments with LangSmith observability
Metrics:
- 119,000+ GitHub stars
- 272,000+ repositories use LangChain
- 500+ integrations (models, vector stores, tools)
- 3,800+ contributors
Use alternatives instead:
- LlamaIndex: RAG-focused, better for document Q&A
- LangGraph: Complex stateful workflows, more control
- Haystack: Production search pipelines
- Semantic Kernel: Microsoft ecosystem
Quick start
Installation
# Core library (Python 3.10+)
pip install -U langchain
# With OpenAI
pip install langchain-openai
# With Anthropic
pip install langchain-anthropic
# Common extras
pip install langchain-community # 500+ integrations
pip install langchain-chroma # Vector store
Basic LLM usage
from langchain_anthropic import ChatAnthropic
# Initialize model
llm = ChatAnthropic(model="claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929")
# Simple completion
response = llm.invoke("Explain quantum computing in 2 sentences")
print(response.content)
Create an agent (ReAct pattern)
from langchain.agents import create_agent
from langchain_anthropic import ChatAnthropic
# Define tools
def get_weather(city: str) -> str:
"""Get current weather for a city."""
return f"It's sunny in {city}, 72°F"
def search_web(query: str) -> str:
"""Search the web for information."""
return f"Search results for: {query}"
# Create agent (<10 lines!)
agent = create_agent(
model=ChatAnthropic(model="claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929"),
tools=[get_weather, search_web],
system_prompt="You are a helpful assistant. Use tools when needed."
)
# Run agent
result = agent.invoke({"messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "What's the weather in Paris?"}]})
print(result["messages"][-1].content)
Core concepts
1. Models - LLM abstraction
from langchain_openai import ChatOpenAI
from langchain_anthropic import ChatAnthropic
from langchain_google_genai import ChatGoogleGenerativeAI
# Swap providers easily
llm = ChatOpenAI(model="gpt-4o")
llm = ChatAnthropic(model="claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929")
llm = ChatGoogleGenerativeAI(model="gemini-2.0-flash-exp")
# Streaming
for chunk in llm.stream("Write a poem"):
print(chunk.content, end="", flush=True)
2. Chains - Sequential operations
from langchain.chains import LLMChain
from langchain.prompts import PromptTemplate
# Define prompt template
prompt = PromptTemplate(
input_variables=["topic"],
template="Write a 3-sentence summary about {topic}"
)
# Create chain
chain = LLMChain(llm=llm, prompt=prompt)
# Run chain
result = chain.run(topic="machine learning")
3. Agents - Tool-using reasoning
ReAct (Reasoning + Acting) pattern:
from langchain.agents import create_tool_calling_agent, AgentExecutor
from langchain.tools import Tool
# Define custom tool
calculator = Tool(
name="Calculator",
func=lambda x: eval(x),
description="Useful for math calculations. Input: valid Python expression."
)
# Create agent with tools
agent = create_tool_calling_agent(
llm=llm,
tools=[calculator, search_web],
prompt="Answer questions using available tools"
)
# Create executor
agent_executor = AgentExecutor(agent=agent, tools=[calculator], verbose=True)
# Run with reasoning
result = agent_executor.invoke({"input": "What is 25 * 17 + 142?"})
4. Memory - Conversation history
from langchain.memory import ConversationBufferMemory
from langchain.chains import ConversationChain
# Add memory to track conversation
memory = ConversationBufferMemory()
conversation = ConversationChain(
llm=llm,
memory=memory,
verbose=True
)
# Multi-turn conversation
conversation.predict(input="Hi, I'm Alice")
conversation.predict(input="What's my name?") # Remembers "Alice"
RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)
Basic RAG pipeline
from langchain_community.document_loaders import WebBaseLoader
from langchain.text_splitter import RecursiveCharacterTextSplitter
from langchain_openai import OpenAIEmbeddings
from langchain_chroma import Chroma
from langchain.chains import RetrievalQA
# 1. Load documents
loader = WebBaseLoader("https://docs.python.org/3/tutorial/")
docs = loader.load()
# 2. Split into chunks
text_splitter = RecursiveCharacterTextSplitter(
chunk_size=1000,
chunk_overlap=200
)
splits = text_splitter.split_documents(docs)
# 3. Create embeddings and vector store
vectorstore = Chroma.from_documents(
documents=splits,
embedding=OpenAIEmbeddings()
)
# 4. Create retriever
retriever = vectorstore.as_retriever(search_kwargs={"k": 4})
# 5. Create QA chain
qa_chain = RetrievalQA.from_chain_type(
llm=llm,
retriever=retriever,
return_source_documents=True
)
# 6. Query
result = qa_chain({"query": "What are Python decorators?"})
print(result["result"])
print(f"Sources: {result['source_documents']}")
Conversational RAG with memory
from langchain.chains import ConversationalRetrievalChain
# RAG with conversation memory
qa = ConversationalRetrievalChain.from_llm(
llm=llm,
retriever=retriever,
memory=ConversationBufferMemory(
memory_key="chat_history",
return_messages=True
)
)
# Multi-turn RAG
qa({"question": "What is Python used for?"})
qa({"question": "Can you elaborate on web development?"}) # Remembers context
Advanced agent patterns
Structured output
from langchain_core.pydantic_v1 import BaseModel, Field
# Define schema
class WeatherReport(BaseModel):
city: str = Field(description="City name")
temperature: float = Field(description="Temperature in Fahrenheit")
condition: str = Field(description="Weather condition")
# Get structured response
structured_llm = llm.with_structured_output(WeatherReport)
result = structured_llm.invoke("What's the weather in SF? It's 65F and sunny")
print(result.city, result.temperature, result.condition)
Parallel tool execution
from langchain.agents import create_tool_calling_agent
# Agent automatically parallelizes independent tool calls
agent = create_tool_calling_agent(
llm=llm,
tools=[get_weather, search_web, calculator]
)
# This will call get_weather("Paris") and get_weather("London") in parallel
result = agent.invoke({
"messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Compare weather in Paris and London"}]
})
Streaming agent execution
# Stream agent steps
for step in agent_executor.stream({"input": "Research AI trends"}):
if "actions" in step:
print(f"Tool: {step['actions'][0].tool}")
if "output" in step:
print(f"Output: {step['output']}")
Common patterns
Multi-document QA
from langchain.chains.qa_with_sources import load_qa_with_sources_chain
# Load multiple documents
docs = [
loader.load("https://docs.python.org"),
loader.load("https://docs.numpy.org")
]
# QA with source citations
chain = load_qa_with_sources_chain(llm, chain_type="stuff")
result = chain({"input_documents": docs, "question": "How to use numpy arrays?"})
print(result["output_text"]) # Includes source citations
Custom tools with error handling
from langchain.tools import tool
@tool
def risky_operation(query: str) -> str:
"""Perform a risky operation that might fail."""
try:
# Your operation here
result = perform_operation(query)
return f"Success: {result}"
except Exception as e:
return f"Error: {str(e)}"
# Agent handles errors gracefully
agent = create_agent(model=llm, tools=[risky_operation])
LangSmith observability
import os
# Enable tracing
os.environ["LANGCHAIN_TRACING_V2"] = "true"
os.environ["LANGCHAIN_API_KEY"] = "your-api-key"
os.environ["LANGCHAIN_PROJECT"] = "my-project"
# All chains/agents automatically traced
agent = create_agent(model=llm, tools=[calculator])
result = agent.invoke({"input": "Calculate 123 * 456"})
# View traces at smith.langchain.com
Vector stores
Chroma (local)
from langchain_chroma import Chroma
vectorstore = Chroma.from_documents(
documents=docs,
embedding=OpenAIEmbeddings(),
persist_directory="./chroma_db"
)
Pinecone (cloud)
from langchain_pinecone import PineconeVectorStore
vectorstore = PineconeVectorStore.from_documents(
documents=docs,
embedding=OpenAIEmbeddings(),
index_name="my-index"
)
FAISS (similarity search)
from langchain_community.vectorstores import FAISS
vectorstore = FAISS.from_documents(docs, OpenAIEmbeddings())
vectorstore.save_local("faiss_index")
# Load later
vectorstore = FAISS.load_local("faiss_index", OpenAIEmbeddings())
Document loaders
# Web pages
from langchain_community.document_loaders import WebBaseLoader
loader = WebBaseLoader("https://example.com")
# PDFs
from langchain_community.document_loaders import PyPDFLoader
loader = PyPDFLoader("paper.pdf")
# GitHub
from langchain_community.document_loaders import GithubFileLoader
loader = GithubFileLoader(repo="user/repo", file_filter=lambda x: x.endswith(".py"))
# CSV
from langchain_community.document_loaders import CSVLoader
loader = CSVLoader("data.csv")
Text splitters
# Recursive (recommended for general text)
from langchain.text_splitter import RecursiveCharacterTextSplitter
splitter = RecursiveCharacterTextSplitter(
chunk_size=1000,
chunk_overlap=200,
separators=["\n\n", "\n", " ", ""]
)
# Code-aware
from langchain.text_splitter import PythonCodeTextSplitter
splitter = PythonCodeTextSplitter(chunk_size=500)
# Semantic (by meaning)
from langchain_experimental.text_splitter import SemanticChunker
splitter = SemanticChunker(OpenAIEmbeddings())
Best practices
- Start simple - Use
create_agent()for most cases - Enable streaming - Better UX for long responses
- Add error handling - Tools can fail, handle gracefully
- Use LangSmith - Essential for debugging agents
- Optimize chunk size - 500-1000 chars for RAG
- Version prompts - Track changes in production
- Cache embeddings - Expensive, cache when possible
- Monitor costs - Track token usage with LangSmith
Performance benchmarks
| Operation | Latency | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Simple LLM call | ~1-2s | Depends on provider |
| Agent with 1 tool | ~3-5s | ReAct reasoning overhead |
| RAG retrieval | ~0.5-1s | Vector search + LLM |
| Embedding 1000 docs | ~10-30s | Depends on model |
LangChain vs LangGraph
| Feature | LangChain | LangGraph |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Quick agents, RAG | Complex workflows |
| Abstraction level | High | Low |
| Code to start | <10 lines | ~30 lines |
| Control | Simple | Full control |
| Stateful workflows | Limited | Native |
| Cyclic graphs | No | Yes |
| Human-in-loop | Basic | Advanced |
Use LangGraph when:
- Need stateful workflows with cycles
- Require fine-grained control
- Building multi-agent systems
- Production apps with complex logic
References
- Agents Guide - ReAct, tool calling, streaming
- RAG Guide - Document loaders, retrievers, QA chains
- Integration Guide - Vector stores, LangSmith, deployment
Resources
- GitHub: https://github.com/langchain-ai/langchain ⭐ 119,000+
- Docs: https://docs.langchain.com
- API Reference: https://reference.langchain.com/python
- LangSmith: https://smith.langchain.com (observability)
- Version: 0.3+ (stable)
- License: MIT
FAQ
What does the langchain skill do?
Framework for building LLM-powered applications with agents, chains, and RAG. Supports multiple providers (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google), 500+ integrations, ReAct agents, tool calling, memory management, and vector store retrieval. Use for building chatbots, question-answering systems, autonomous agents, or RAG applications. Best for rapid prototyping and production deployments.
How do I install langchain?
Run npx skills add https://github.com/orchestra-research/ai-research-skills --skill langchain in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/langchain/ (personal) or .claude/skills/langchain/ (project).
Which AI agents can use langchain?
Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.
Is langchain safe to install?
No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.
Who maintains langchain?
It is published by orchestra-research in orchestra-research/ai-research-skills. It has 965 recorded installs.
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