Introducing Dynamic Workflows in Claude Code: Quarter-Long Work in Days
Dynamic workflows in Claude Code enable Claude to tackle the most challenging engineering tasks end-to-end with parallel subagents, adversarial checking, and automated orchestration.
Claude CodeAI AgentsDeveloper ToolsCode MigrationAutomation
TL;DR: Dynamic workflows in Claude Code let Claude orchestrate tens to hundreds of parallel subagents to tackle complex engineering tasks end-to-end. Work that normally takes quarters now finishes in days—bug hunts across entire services, migrations touching hundreds of files, and plans stress-tested from every angle.
What Are Dynamic Workflows?
Anthropic launched dynamic workflows in Claude Code today (May 28, 2026), introducing a paradigm shift in how AI handles complex, large-scale engineering tasks.
Some problems are too big for one pass by a single agent, especially in complex, legacy codebases:
Bug hunts across an entire service
Migrations that touch hundreds of files
Plans you want stress-tested from every angle before committing
Dynamic workflows handle all of these end-to-end.
How Dynamic Workflows Work
When a workflow kicks off, Claude:
Plans dynamically based on your prompt
Breaks it into subtasks with clear objectives
Fans the work out across subagents running in parallel
Checks results before they're folded in
Iterates until answers converge
Agents address the problem from independent angles, other agents try to refute what they found, and the run keeps iterating until the answers converge—which is how a workflow reaches results a single pass can't.
Key Capabilities
Parallel Execution: Dynamic workflows can run dozens to hundreds of subagents simultaneously, each working on independent subtasks.
Adversarial Checking: Independent agents work to break the results before you see them, ensuring high-quality outputs when the cost of a wrong answer is high.
Long-Running Sessions: Built for work that can extend into hours and days, with progress saved continuously so interrupted jobs pick up where they left off.
Coordinated Results: Because the coordination happens outside the conversation, the plan stays on track no matter how big the task gets.
Early access users and teams inside Anthropic have been using dynamic workflows for:
Codebase-Wide Audits
Bug hunts: Claude searches the entire service or repo in parallel, then runs independent verification on every finding so the report surfaces real issues
Security audits: Hardening passes for auth checks, input validation, and unsafe patterns across an entire codebase
Performance optimization: Profiler-guided optimization audits with parallel analysis and verification
Large-Scale Migrations
Framework swaps: Migrating from one framework to another across thousands of files
API deprecations: Updating deprecated API calls throughout the codebase
Language ports: Converting entire codebases from one language to another while maintaining test coverage
Critical Work Verification
When the cost of a wrong answer is high, a workflow gives Claude:
Independent attempts at the problem
Adversarial agents working to break the result
Multiple verification passes before you see the output
Case Study: Rewriting Bun from Zig to Rust
Jarred Sumner used dynamic workflows to port Bun from Zig to Rust—a monumental task that showcases what workflows can unlock at scale:
The Numbers:
~750,000 lines of Rust generated
99.8% test suite passing after port
11 days from first commit to merge
Hundreds of agents working in parallel
The Process:
Lifetime mapping workflow: Mapped the right Rust lifetime for every struct field in the Zig codebase
Port workflow: Wrote every .rs file as a behavior-identical port of its .zig counterpart, with two reviewers on each file
Fix loop workflow: Drove the build and test suite until both ran clean
Optimization workflow: Addressed unnecessary data copies overnight and opened PRs for final review
While not yet in production, all of this was handled by dynamic workflows. Jarred will be writing about this more in the future.
How to Enable Dynamic Workflows
Dynamic workflows are available today in research preview for:
Claude Code CLI
Claude Code Desktop
VS Code extension (Max, Team, and Enterprise plans if admin enabled)
Claude API, Amazon Bedrock, Vertex AI, and Microsoft Foundry
Option 1: Direct Request
Ask Claude to create a dynamic workflow:
snippet
"Create a workflow to audit all authentication checks in our codebase"
Option 2: Ultracode Mode
Turn on the ultracode setting (accessible through the effort menu):
Sets effort level to xhigh
Lets Claude decide automatically when to use a workflow
Best for ongoing complex work
For the best experience, turn on auto mode when using dynamic workflows.
Important Considerations
Token Consumption
Dynamic workflows can consume substantially more tokens than a typical Claude Code session. Anthropic recommends:
Start on a scoped task to get a feel for usage
The first time a workflow triggers, Claude Code shows what's about to run and asks you to confirm
Organization admins can optionally disable workflows through managed settings
Update — July 16, 2026: Jarred Sumner's Bun Zig→Rust port — ~50 workflows, ~64 peak agents, 11 days — is the largest public dynamic-workflow case study. Full breakdown: Bun rewrite Fireship coverage.
Dynamic workflows are available in research preview starting May 28, 2026. Token consumption can be significantly higher than typical sessions—start with scoped tasks to understand usage patterns for your work.
