OpenAI: Multi-Agent Portfolio Collaboration with OpenAI Agents SDK
A multi-agent system built with the OpenAI Agents SDK delegates investment analysis tasks to specialized agents coordinated by a central Portfolio Manager, ensuring modular, scalable, and transparent research.
Summary of Read Full Report
Introduces a multi-agent system built using the OpenAI Agents SDK for complex investment research. It outlines an "agent as a tool" pattern where a central Portfolio Manager agent orchestrates specialized agents (Fundamental, Macro, Quantitative) and various tools to analyze market data and generate investment reports.
The text highlights the modularity, parallelism, and transparency offered by this architecture for building robust and scalable agent workflows. It details the different tool types supported by the SDK and provides an example output of the system in action, emphasizing the importance of structured prompts and tracing for building effective agent systems.
-
Complex tasks can be broken down and delegated to multiple specialist agents for deeper, higher-quality results. Instead of using a single agent for everything, multi-agent collaboration allows different autonomous agents to handle specific subtasks or expertise areas. In the investment research example, specialists like Macro, Fundamental, and Quantitative agents contribute their expertise, leading to a more nuanced and robust answer synthesized by a Portfolio Manager agent.
-
The "Agent as a Tool" pattern is a powerful approach for transparent and scalable multi-agent systems. This model involves a central agent (like the Portfolio Manager) calling other agents as tools for specific subtasks, maintaining a single thread of control and simplifying coordination. This approach is used in the provided example and allows for parallel execution of sub-tasks, making the overall reasoning transparent and auditable.
-
The OpenAI Agents SDK supports a variety of tool types, offering flexibility in extending agent capabilities.Agents can leverage built-in managed tools like Code Interpreter and WebSearch, connect to external services via MCP servers (like for Yahoo Finance data), and use custom Python functions (like for FRED economic data or file operations) defined with the function_tool decorator. This broad tool support allows agents to perform advanced actions and access domain-specific data.
-
Structured prompts and careful orchestration are crucial for building robust and consistent multi-agent workflows. The Head Portfolio Manager agent's system prompt encodes the firm's philosophy, tool usage rules, and a step-by-step workflow, ensuring consistency and auditability across runs. Modularity, parallel execution (enabled by features like parallel_tool_calls=True), and clear tool definitions are highlighted as best practices enabled by the SDK.
-
The system design emphasizes modularity, extensibility, and observability. By wrapping specialist agents as callable tools and structuring the workflow with a central coordinator, it's easier to update, test, or add new agents or tools. OpenAI Traces provide detailed visibility into every agent and tool call, making the workflow fully transparent and easier to debug.
Related Articles
Multi-Agent Portfolio Collab with OpenAI Agents SDK
OpenAI’s tutorial shows how a hub-and-spoke agent architecture can transform investment research by orchestrating specialist AI “colleagues” with modular tools and full auditability.
Gemini 3.1 Pro and the Case for Model-Agnostic Agentic Infrastructure
Google's Gemini 3.1 Pro doubled its reasoning benchmarks overnight. Here's why that makes model-agnostic agentic infrastructure more critical than ever.
Google Gemini 3.1 Pro, ChatGPT Ads, and Why Organizations Need to Own Their AI Infrastructure
Google launches Gemini 3.1 Pro with advanced reasoning while OpenAI rolls out ads in ChatGPT. These two moves reveal a growing tension in enterprise AI: who controls the intelligence layer, and whose interests does it serve?
ChatGPT Now Has Ads — And It Should Change How You Think About AI Infrastructure
OpenAI has started showing ads inside ChatGPT responses. This marks a turning point: organizations relying on consumer AI tools are now subject to someone else's monetization strategy. Here's why owning your AI infrastructure matters more than ever.
See the ibl.ai AI Operating System in Action
Discover how leading universities and organizations are transforming education with the ibl.ai AI Operating System. Explore real-world implementations from Harvard, MIT, Stanford, and users from 400+ institutions worldwide.
View Case StudiesGet Started with ibl.ai
Choose the plan that fits your needs and start transforming your educational experience today.