Anthropic PBC is making it easier to automate tasks using Claude Code without relying on autonomous artificial intelligence agents with the launch of a new service called “routines.”

The routines allow Claude Code users to run automations on the company’s own cloud-based infrastructure. “A routine is a saved Claude Code configuration: a prompt, one or more repositories, and a set of connectors packaged once and run automatically,” the company explained in a blog post today.

Anthropic added that the routines are executed on cloud infrastructure managed by itself, so they will keep running even if users shut off their own laptops.

If this idea sounds familiar, it’s because they are quite similar to scheduled tasks such as cron jobs and GitHub Actions, or genuine AI agents, but there are some differences. Whereas cron jobs and GitHub Actions run set scripts at set times or after specific events occur, without input from an AI model, Claude Code’s routines prompt an AI model on a schedule or following a predefined trigger or webhook. The actions taken are then dependent on the context they encounter and the available connectors they can access, Anthropic said.

AI agents, on the other hand, are an ongoing process that maintains state and involves model interactions with third-party tools and data sources. As such, Claude routines are more like dynamic cron jobs or short-lived, trigger-driven AI agents.

According to Anthropic, developers will find that Claude Code’s routines are most useful for handling tasks such as verifying software deployment or triaging alert messages. In the case of the former, it would scan the continuous integration/continuous deployment output, check for errors and then post a report.

The company said routines are available to Claude Code Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise subscribers, but they must ensure the model is web-enabled. The use of routines will count against subscriber’s usage limits, and there are daily limits on their use too. According to Anthropic, Pro users can run up to five routines per day, Max users get 15, and Team and Enterprise users will receive 25. Customers can exceed these limits, but they’ll be billed extra for the privilege.

Alongside the new routines, Anthropic revealed a redesigned Claude Code desktop application that tweaks the user interface to bring more functions to the forefront for users and reduce app-switching. “The redesign brings more commonly used tools into the app, so you can review, tweak and ship Claude’s work without bouncing to your editor,” the company explained in a second blog post.

The updates include an integrated terminal, a faster diff viewer, in-app file editor and an expanded preview area. It suggests that Anthropic is trying to own the interface used by developers to interact with Claude. By eliminating the need for users to “bounce” to their own editor, it encourages them to access the tool directly instead of doing so through a VS code plugin or third-party platform such as OpenCode.

In addition, Anthropic stressed that Claude Code now offers the ability to support multiple sessions, which is an effort to cater to the way developers actually work with AI models on a daily basis. These days, most attempt to multitask, and will get AI agents to perform numerous jobs at the same time.

“For many developers, the shape of agentic work has changed,” the company wrote. “You’re not typing one prompt and waiting. You’re kicking off a refactor in one repo, a bug fix in another, and a test-writing pass in a third, checking on each as results come in, steering when something drifts, and reviewing diffs before you ship.”

Images: Anthropic