# rpk ai run claude
> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/llms.txt). Component-specific: [agentic-data-plane-full.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/agentic-data-plane-full.txt)
---
title: rpk ai run claude
latest-operator-version: v26.2.2
latest-console-tag: v3.10.0
latest-connect-version: 4.105.0
latest-redpanda-tag: v26.2.1
docname: rpk/rpk-ai/rpk-ai-run-claude
page-component-name: agentic-data-plane
page-version: master
page-component-version: master
page-component-title: Agentic Data Plane
page-relative-src-path: rpk/rpk-ai/rpk-ai-run-claude.adoc
page-edit-url: https://github.com/redpanda-data/adp-docs/edit/main/modules/reference/pages/rpk/rpk-ai/rpk-ai-run-claude.adoc
description: Launch Anthropic's Claude Code CLI with its model traffic routed through the Redpanda AI gateway for the current rpk ai environment. rpk ai points ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL at the gateway's Anthropic Messages endpoint for the chosen provider and wires the gateway auth for the life of the session.
page-git-created-date: "2026-06-25"
page-git-modified-date: "2026-08-06"
---
Launch Anthropic’s Claude Code CLI with its model traffic routed through the Redpanda AI gateway for the current `rpk` ai environment.
`rpk` ai points ANTHROPIC\_BASE\_URL at the gateway’s Anthropic Messages endpoint for the chosen provider and wires the gateway auth for the life of the session. No token is ever written to disk.
Both auth modes run in your REAL Claude Code config home, so your workspace trust, onboarding, theme, and MCP servers all apply. `rpk` ai writes nothing into `~/.claude` in either mode:
- managed (api key): the gateway apiKeyHelper (`rpk ai auth token`, which Claude Code re-runs to refresh the bearer; aigw injects the upstream Anthropic key) is passed via `claude --settings` as a JSON string; off disk, merged on top of your settings, your `~/.claude/settings.json` untouched.
- passthrough (enterprise/Max subscription): your existing subscription login (stored under your config home) is used. `rpk` ai only sets the gateway base URL and the X-Redpanda-Cloud-Token header (minted fresh at launch) in the environment; your subscription OAuth flows through aigw to Anthropic untouched.
Pass `--claude-config-dir` to run against an isolated config home instead of your real one (`rpk` ai still never writes into it).
In passthrough mode the X-Redpanda-Cloud-Token gateway JWT is set in the launched process environment, so Claude Code’s tool subprocesses (Bash, hooks, MCP) inherit it; the same Redpanda Cloud token any process running as you can already mint with `rpk ai auth token`, and Claude Code has no documented mechanism to scrub it from those subprocesses.
Because passthrough uses your real config home, any auth configured in your `~/.claude/settings.json` (an apiKeyHelper, or env.ANTHROPIC\_AUTH\_TOKEN) still applies and outranks the subscription OAuth aigw needs to relay; `rpk` ai scrubs only the inherited shell env, not your on-disk settings.
Anthropic and Bedrock providers are supported. A bedrock provider launches Claude Code in its native Bedrock mode pointed at the same gateway prefix; aigw signs the upstream call with the provider’s AWS credentials (SigV4), so no AWS keys ever reach your machine and the managed apiKeyHelper auth works exactly as above (passthrough does not apply; there is no Bedrock analog of a Claude subscription). Pass `-m` an inference-profile id from the provider’s model allowlist (Bedrock Anthropic models 4.6+ carry a us./eu./apac./global. prefix). Claude Code’s background (small/fast) model defaults to a Haiku-class inference profile in Bedrock mode; if the provider\`s allowlist doesn\`t include it, export ANTHROPIC\_SMALL\_FAST\_MODEL with an allowlisted id.
Pass Claude Code’s own flags after a literal --:
```text
rpk ai run claude -L anthropic -m claude-sonnet-4-6 -- --permission-mode plan
rpk ai run claude -L bedrock -m us.anthropic.claude-sonnet-4-6 -- -p "hi"
```
## [](#usage)Usage
```bash
rpk ai run claude [flags]
```
## [](#flags)Flags
| Value | Type | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| --bedrock | bool | force bedrock mode. Only needed when you have invoke-only access and rpk ai can’t read the provider to detect its type; when the provider can be read, its own type wins. |
| --claude-config-dir | string | run against this CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR instead of your real/inherited config home (rpk ai never writes into it; the managed apiKeyHelper rides in --settings). Default: your real home, so trust/onboarding/theme/MCP all apply. |
| -L, --llmprovider | string | aigw LLM provider name to route through (an anthropic or bedrock provider). |
| -m, --model | string | model id to use (must be in the provider’s allowlist; for bedrock providers an inference-profile id like us.anthropic.claude-sonnet-4-6); omit to let Claude Code pick its default. |
| --passthrough | bool | force passthrough (enterprise/subscription) auth mode. Only needed when you have invoke-only access and rpk ai can’t read the provider to detect the mode; when the provider can be read, its own setting wins. |
| --print-settings | bool | print the generated Claude Code settings.json plus launch env, then exit (no claude needed; the provider type/mode resolve via a best-effort gateway lookup; offline the dump falls back to the managed anthropic shape, or bedrock with --bedrock). |
## [](#global-flags)Global flags
| Value | Type | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| --config | string | Redpanda or rpk config file; default search paths are ~/.config/rpk/rpk.yaml, $PWD/redpanda.yaml, and /etc/redpanda/redpanda.yaml. |
| -X, --config-opt | stringArray | Override rpk configuration settings; -X help for detail or -X list for terser detail. |
| --ignore-profile | bool | Ignore rpk.yaml and redpanda.yaml; use default settings. |
| --profile | string | rpk profile to use. |
| -v, --verbose | bool | Enable verbose logging. |