OpenAI Realtime Agents SDK
OpenAI's Agents SDK pattern over the Realtime API for voice-native assistants.
OpenAI's Agents SDK pattern over the Realtime API for voice-native assistants.
Best for builders standardizing on OpenAI for speech-to-speech with tool use. Pricing: see vendor pricing.
What it is
OpenAI's openai-realtime-agents reference repo demonstrates multi-agent voice patterns over the Realtime API — guardrails, handoffs, and tool-calling — with the official Agents SDK. It functions as the canonical starter for serious voice-native applications on OpenAI's stack and is widely forked as a base for Vapi or LiveKit Agents builds.
Watch out for: Voice features tied to OpenAI Realtime quotas and limits.
Features
| Speaker diarization | No |
| Word-level timestamps | No |
| Streaming / real-time | No |
| Languages supported | None |
| HIPAA eligible | No |
OpenAI Realtime Agents SDK vs Whipscribe
| Feature | OpenAI Realtime Agents SDK | Whipscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Transcription APIs | Transcription APIs |
| Pricing | see vendor pricing | free beta |
| Speaker diarization | — | Yes |
| Word timestamps | — | Yes |
| Streaming | — | No |
| Languages | — | 99 |
| Platforms | Cloud, API | Web, API, MCP |
Alternatives to OpenAI Realtime Agents SDK
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