Microsoft SDK for adding models, plugins and agents to .NET, Python and Java apps
Semantic Kernel is an open-source Microsoft SDK that lets existing applications call language models through ordinary code. It provides abstractions for prompts, plugins, planners and agents across C#, Python and Java, so a .NET or Java service can add AI features without adopting a new runtime or rewriting its architecture. Plugins wrap existing functions and APIs so models can call them, memory and vector store connectors handle retrieval, and agent support builds on the same primitives. It is designed for teams that already have an application and want to add intelligence to it.
Last updated: 2026-09-20. This site only provides an index; for exact features, pricing, and licensing, see the official website.
enterprise developers, .net and java applications, plugin architectures and ai features
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A wrapper around a function or API that a model can call. It is how your existing business logic becomes something the assistant can use, without duplicating that logic inside prompts.
C#, Python and Java share the same concepts, which is useful for organisations running services in more than one stack. Feature parity between them is close but not always identical.
It can be, but its value shows most when you already have an application with functions worth exposing. For a quick prototype, a lighter library is often faster to adopt.
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