diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 98c9bc1..abb4ea6 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -11,17 +11,14 @@ jobs:
   build:
     # we want to run ubuntu-latest but we'll pin to a specific version so CI is reproducable
     runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
-    strategy:
-      matrix:
-        java: [ '17' ] # Java is
 
     steps:
     - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
-    - name: Set up JDK ${{ matrix.java }}
+    - name: Set up JDK 17
       uses: actions/setup-java@v4
       with:
-        java-version: ${{ matrix.java }}
+        java-version: 17
         distribution: 'temurin'
 
     - name: Grant execute permission for gradlew
@@ -34,5 +31,5 @@ jobs:
       uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
       if: always()
       with:
-        name: test-results-java-${{ matrix.java }}
+        name: test-results
         path: build/test-results/test/
diff --git a/.github/workflows/create-and-publish-release.yml b/.github/workflows/create-and-publish-release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9488445
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/create-and-publish-release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+# This workflow creates a new release by running CI and then executing the release script.
+# It can be run manually with a choice of which semver segment to bump.
+name: Create And Publish Release
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      semver_segment_to_bump:
+        description: 'Which semver segment to bump'
+        required: true
+        default: 'PATCH'
+        type: choice
+        options:
+          - PATCH
+          - MINOR
+          - MAJOR
+      branch:
+        description: 'Branch to create release from'
+        required: true
+        default: 'main'
+        type: string
+
+jobs:
+  ci:
+    name: Run CI
+    # we want to run ubuntu-latest but we'll pin to a specific version so CI is reproducable
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ inputs.branch }}
+
+      - name: Set up JDK 17
+        uses: actions/setup-java@v4
+        with:
+          java-version: '17'
+          distribution: 'temurin'
+
+      - name: Setup Gradle
+        uses: gradle/gradle-build-action@v2
+
+      - name: Run tests
+        run: ./gradlew check build
+
+  create-release:
+    name: Create Release
+    # we want to run ubuntu-latest but we'll pin to a specific version so CI is reproducable
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    needs: ci
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ inputs.branch }}
+          token: ${{ secrets.RELEASE_TOKEN }}
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - name: Configure Git
+        run: |
+          git config --global user.name "github-actions[bot]"
+          git config --global user.email "github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
+
+      - name: Run release script
+        run: |
+          chmod +x scripts/create-new-release.sh
+          scripts/create-new-release.sh --push=true --branch=${{ inputs.branch }} --semver-segment-to-bump=${{ inputs.semver_segment_to_bump }}
diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-existing-release.yml b/.github/workflows/publish-existing-release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..85612dc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-existing-release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,136 @@
+# This workflow is triggered when a new tag is pushed to main.
+# It can also be run manually to re-publish a release in case it failed for some reason.
+name: Publish Existing Release
+
+on:
+  push:
+    tags:
+      - 'v*'
+    branches:
+      - main
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      tag:
+        description: 'Tag to publish (e.g., v1.0.0)'
+        required: true
+        type: string
+
+jobs:
+  validate-and-publish:
+    name: Validate Tag and Publish Release
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+          
+      - name: Determine tag
+        id: determine-tag
+        run: |
+          if [[ "${{ github.event_name }}" == "push" ]]; then
+            TAG_NAME="${{ github.ref_name }}"
+          else
+            TAG_NAME="${{ inputs.tag }}"
+          fi
+          echo "tag=$TAG_NAME" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          echo "Using tag: $TAG_NAME"
+          
+      - name: Validate tag format
+        run: |
+          TAG="${{ steps.determine-tag.outputs.tag }}"
+          
+          # Check if tag starts with 'v'
+          if [[ ! "$TAG" =~ ^v ]]; then
+            echo "Error: Tag '$TAG' must start with 'v'"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          
+          # Extract version without 'v' prefix
+          VERSION="${TAG#v}"
+          
+          # Check if version is valid semver (x.y.z)
+          if [[ ! "$VERSION" =~ ^[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+$ ]]; then
+            echo "Error: Tag '$TAG' is not valid semver format (vx.y.z)"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          
+          # Check that version does not end with -SNAPSHOT
+          if [[ "$VERSION" =~ -SNAPSHOT$ ]]; then
+            echo "Error: Tag '$TAG' cannot end with '-SNAPSHOT'"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          
+          echo "Tag '$TAG' is valid"
+          
+      - name: Verify tag exists
+        run: |
+          TAG="${{ steps.determine-tag.outputs.tag }}"
+          if ! git tag -l | grep -q "^$TAG$"; then
+            echo "Error: Tag '$TAG' does not exist"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          echo "Tag '$TAG' exists"
+          
+      - name: Checkout tag
+        run: |
+          git checkout ${{ steps.determine-tag.outputs.tag }}
+          
+      - name: Set up JDK 17
+        uses: actions/setup-java@v4
+        with:
+          java-version: '17'
+          distribution: 'temurin'
+          
+      - name: Setup Gradle
+        uses: gradle/gradle-build-action@v2
+        
+      - name: Run CI
+        run: ./gradlew check build
+        
+      - name: Build release artifacts
+        run: ./gradlew publishToMavenLocal -Pversion=${{ steps.determine-tag.outputs.tag }}
+        
+      - name: Find built artifacts
+        id: find-artifacts
+        run: |
+          VERSION="${{ steps.determine-tag.outputs.tag }}"
+          VERSION_NO_V="${VERSION#v}"
+          
+          # Find the built JAR files
+          MAIN_JAR=$(find build/libs -name "*-${VERSION_NO_V}.jar" ! -name "*-sources.jar" ! -name "*-javadoc.jar" | head -1)
+          SOURCES_JAR=$(find build/libs -name "*-${VERSION_NO_V}-sources.jar" | head -1)
+          JAVADOC_JAR=$(find build/libs -name "*-${VERSION_NO_V}-javadoc.jar" | head -1)
+          
+          echo "main-jar=$MAIN_JAR" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          echo "sources-jar=$SOURCES_JAR" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT  
+          echo "javadoc-jar=$JAVADOC_JAR" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          
+          echo "Found artifacts:"
+          echo "  Main JAR: $MAIN_JAR"
+          echo "  Sources JAR: $SOURCES_JAR"
+          echo "  Javadoc JAR: $JAVADOC_JAR"
+        
+      - name: Create GitHub Release
+        run: |
+          TAG="${{ steps.determine-tag.outputs.tag }}"
+          
+          # Create the release
+          gh release create "$TAG" \
+            --generate-notes \
+            --title "Release $TAG"
+          
+          # Upload artifacts if they exist
+          if [[ -n "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.main-jar }}" && -f "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.main-jar }}" ]]; then
+            gh release upload "$TAG" "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.main-jar }}"
+          fi
+          
+          if [[ -n "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.sources-jar }}" && -f "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.sources-jar }}" ]]; then
+            gh release upload "$TAG" "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.sources-jar }}"
+          fi
+          
+          if [[ -n "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.javadoc-jar }}" && -f "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.javadoc-jar }}" ]]; then
+            gh release upload "$TAG" "${{ steps.find-artifacts.outputs.javadoc-jar }}"
+          fi
+        env:
+          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index cc6ba68..18d530f 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -69,6 +69,13 @@ The remaining sections document developing the SDK itself. Nothing below is requ
   - These hooks automatically run common checks for you but CI also runs the same checks before merging to the main branch is allowed
   - NOTE: this will overwrite existing hooks. Take backups before running
 
+<!-- ## Releasing the SDK -->
+
+<!-- TODO: polish this section -->
+
+<!-- - summary: push the button on github -->
+<!-- - bumping a major -->
+
 ## Running a local OpenTelemetry collector
 
 OpenTelemetry provides a local collector with a debug exporter which logs all traces, logs, and metrics to stdout.
diff --git a/scripts/create-new-release.sh b/scripts/create-new-release.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..8c81029
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/create-new-release.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,173 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+# Default values
+BRANCH="main"
+PUSH=""
+SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP=""
+
+# Parse command line arguments
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+    case $1 in
+        --push=*)
+            PUSH="${1#*=}"
+            shift
+            ;;
+        --branch=*)
+            BRANCH="${1#*=}"
+            shift
+            ;;
+        --semver-segment-to-bump=*)
+            SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP="${1#*=}"
+            shift
+            ;;
+        *)
+            echo "Unknown option $1"
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+    esac
+done
+
+# Validate required arguments
+if [[ -z "$PUSH" ]]; then
+    echo "Error: --push=true|false is required"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [[ -z "$SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP" ]]; then
+    echo "Error: --semver-segment=MAJOR|MINOR|PATCH is required"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [[ "$PUSH" != "true" && "$PUSH" != "false" ]]; then
+    echo "Error: --push must be 'true' or 'false'"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [[ "$SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP" != "MAJOR" && "$SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP" != "MINOR" && "$SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP" != "PATCH" ]]; then
+    echo "Error: --semver-segment must be 'MAJOR', 'MINOR', or 'PATCH'"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Find repository root
+REPO_ROOT=$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)
+cd "$REPO_ROOT"
+
+# Checkout and update the specified branch
+echo "Checking out branch: $BRANCH"
+git checkout "$BRANCH"
+git pull origin "$BRANCH"
+
+# Assert git state is clean
+if [[ -n $(git status --porcelain) ]]; then
+    echo "Error: Git working directory is not clean"
+    git status
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Read current version from braintrust.properties
+PROPERTIES_FILE="./src/main/resources/braintrust.properties"
+if [[ ! -f "$PROPERTIES_FILE" ]]; then
+    echo "Error: $PROPERTIES_FILE not found"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+CURRENT_SNAPSHOT=$(grep "^sdk.version=" "$PROPERTIES_FILE" | cut -d'=' -f2)
+if [[ -z "$CURRENT_SNAPSHOT" ]]; then
+    echo "Error: sdk.version not found in $PROPERTIES_FILE"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Current snapshot version: $CURRENT_SNAPSHOT"
+
+# Validate current version ends with -SNAPSHOT
+if [[ ! "$CURRENT_SNAPSHOT" =~ -SNAPSHOT$ ]]; then
+    echo "Error: Current version '$CURRENT_SNAPSHOT' does not end with '-SNAPSHOT'"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Remove -SNAPSHOT to get current release version
+CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION="${CURRENT_SNAPSHOT%-SNAPSHOT}"
+echo "Current release version: $CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+
+# Parse version components
+if [[ ! "$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION" =~ ^([0-9]+)\.([0-9]+)\.([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+    echo "Error: Version '$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION' is not in semver format (x.y.z)"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+MAJOR="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
+MINOR="${BASH_REMATCH[2]}"
+PATCH="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+
+# Calculate new version based on semver segment to bump
+case "$SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP" in
+    "MAJOR")
+        NEW_MAJOR=$((MAJOR + 1))
+        NEW_MINOR=0
+        NEW_PATCH=0
+        ;;
+    "MINOR")
+        NEW_MAJOR=$MAJOR
+        NEW_MINOR=$((MINOR + 1))
+        NEW_PATCH=0
+        ;;
+    "PATCH")
+        NEW_MAJOR=$MAJOR
+        NEW_MINOR=$MINOR
+        NEW_PATCH=$((PATCH + 1))
+        ;;
+esac
+
+case "$SEMVER_SEGMENT_TO_BUMP" in
+    # For MAJOR/MINOR bumps, release the .0 version and prepare the next patch snapshot
+    "MAJOR"|"MINOR")
+        # Release version is the bumped version with patch 0
+        CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION="${NEW_MAJOR}.${NEW_MINOR}.0"
+        # Next snapshot is patch 1
+        NEW_SNAPSHOT="${NEW_MAJOR}.${NEW_MINOR}.1-SNAPSHOT"
+        ;;
+    "PATCH")
+        # For patch bumps, use the original logic
+        NEW_SNAPSHOT="${NEW_MAJOR}.${NEW_MINOR}.${NEW_PATCH}-SNAPSHOT"
+        ;;
+esac
+
+echo "New snapshot version: $NEW_SNAPSHOT"
+
+# Update properties file with current release version
+echo "Creating release commit for version: $CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+sed -i "s/^sdk.version=.*/sdk.version=$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION/" "$PROPERTIES_FILE"
+
+# Commit release version
+git add "$PROPERTIES_FILE"
+git commit -m "release $CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+
+# Create tag
+git tag "v$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+echo "Created tag: v$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+
+# Update properties file with new snapshot version
+echo "Creating snapshot commit for version: $NEW_SNAPSHOT"
+sed -i "s/^sdk.version=.*/sdk.version=$NEW_SNAPSHOT/" "$PROPERTIES_FILE"
+
+# Commit new snapshot version
+git add "$PROPERTIES_FILE"
+git commit -m "begin $NEW_SNAPSHOT"
+
+git log --oneline -n 3 # print out what we just did
+# Push if requested
+if [[ "$PUSH" == "true" ]]; then
+    echo "Pushing commits and tags to origin..."
+    git push origin "$BRANCH"
+    git push origin "v$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+    echo "Successfully pushed release $CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION and new snapshot $NEW_SNAPSHOT"
+else
+    echo "Skipping push (--push=false)"
+    echo "To push manually, run:"
+    echo "  git push origin $BRANCH"
+    echo "  git push origin v$CURRENT_RELEASE_VERSION"
+fi
+
+echo "Release process completed successfully!"