diff --git a/src/smallestai/atoms/crew/__init__.py b/src/smallestai/atoms/crew/__init__.py
index e63509ac..fbd176f0 100644
--- a/src/smallestai/atoms/crew/__init__.py
+++ b/src/smallestai/atoms/crew/__init__.py
@@ -5,9 +5,50 @@
 chatbots, and other interactive AI applications.
 
 Usage:
-    from smallestai.atoms.crew.server import AtomsCrewApp
-    from smallestai.atoms.crew.session import CrewSession
-    from smallestai.atoms.crew.nodes import OutputCrewNode, BackgroundCrewNode
-    from smallestai.atoms.crew.clients.openai import OpenAIClient
-    from smallestai.atoms.crew.tools import function_tool, ToolRegistry
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew import AtomsCrewApp
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew import CrewSession
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew import OutputCrewNode, BackgroundCrewNode
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew import OpenAIClient
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew import function_tool, ToolRegistry
+
+The submodule paths (e.g. ``smallestai.atoms.crew.server``) also work.
 """
+
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
+
+# Public API. Imported lazily via __getattr__ (PEP 562) so that importing this
+# package does not eagerly pull in the crew runtime deps (fastapi, uvicorn, ...)
+# that `server` and friends need. Access a name and it is imported on demand.
+_LAZY_EXPORTS = {
+    "AtomsCrewApp": "smallestai.atoms.crew.server",
+    "CrewSession": "smallestai.atoms.crew.session",
+    "OutputCrewNode": "smallestai.atoms.crew.nodes",
+    "BackgroundCrewNode": "smallestai.atoms.crew.nodes",
+    "OpenAIClient": "smallestai.atoms.crew.clients.openai",
+    "function_tool": "smallestai.atoms.crew.tools",
+    "ToolRegistry": "smallestai.atoms.crew.tools",
+}
+
+__all__ = list(_LAZY_EXPORTS.keys())
+
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.clients.openai import OpenAIClient as OpenAIClient
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.nodes import BackgroundCrewNode as BackgroundCrewNode
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.nodes import OutputCrewNode as OutputCrewNode
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.server import AtomsCrewApp as AtomsCrewApp
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.session import CrewSession as CrewSession
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.tools import ToolRegistry as ToolRegistry
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew.tools import function_tool as function_tool
+
+
+def __getattr__(name: str):
+    module_path = _LAZY_EXPORTS.get(name)
+    if module_path is None:
+        raise AttributeError(f"module {__name__!r} has no attribute {name!r}")
+    import importlib
+
+    return getattr(importlib.import_module(module_path), name)
+
+
+def __dir__():
+    return sorted(list(globals().keys()) + __all__)
diff --git a/tests/custom/test_public_imports.py b/tests/custom/test_public_imports.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..2e46aeb6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/custom/test_public_imports.py
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+"""Guards the documented public import surface of `smallestai.atoms.crew`.
+
+A customer hit `ImportError` on `from smallestai.atoms.crew import AtomsCrewApp`
+because `crew/__init__` exported nothing (the imports there lived only in the
+docstring). Both the module docstring and the docs advertise this short path, so
+lock it here: if the package stops exporting a public symbol, this test fails in
+CI rather than in a customer's notebook.
+"""
+
+import importlib
+
+CREW_PUBLIC = [
+    "AtomsCrewApp",
+    "CrewSession",
+    "OutputCrewNode",
+    "BackgroundCrewNode",
+    "OpenAIClient",
+    "function_tool",
+    "ToolRegistry",
+]
+
+
+def test_crew_all_advertises_public_api():
+    mod = importlib.import_module("smallestai.atoms.crew")
+    assert set(CREW_PUBLIC) <= set(mod.__all__)
+
+
+def test_crew_public_symbols_resolve_from_short_path():
+    from smallestai.atoms.crew import (  # noqa: F401
+        AtomsCrewApp,
+        BackgroundCrewNode,
+        CrewSession,
+        OpenAIClient,
+        OutputCrewNode,
+        ToolRegistry,
+        function_tool,
+    )
+
+    for sym in (
+        AtomsCrewApp,
+        CrewSession,
+        OutputCrewNode,
+        BackgroundCrewNode,
+        OpenAIClient,
+        ToolRegistry,
+        function_tool,
+    ):
+        assert sym is not None
+
+
+def test_unknown_attr_raises_attributeerror():
+    mod = importlib.import_module("smallestai.atoms.crew")
+    try:
+        mod.DefinitelyNotAThing
+    except AttributeError:
+        return
+    raise AssertionError("expected AttributeError for an unknown attribute")