---
title: Introduction
description: Learn about Tarko, a tool-augmented agent runtime kernel
---

# Introduction

**Tarko** *(Tool-augmented Agent Runtime Kernel, Open-source)*, pronounced **`/ˈtɑːrkoʊ/`**, is a tool-call and event-stream driven Agent runtime framework with powerful **Context Engineering** capabilities.

## What is Tarko?

Tarko provides:

- **[Context Engineering](/guide/advanced/context-engineering)**: Build agents capable of long-running operations
- **[Tool Call Engine](/guide/basic/tool-call-engine)**: Support for multiple LLM providers with custom parsers
- **[Event Stream Processing](/guide/basic/event-stream)**: Native streaming and Agent Protocol support
- **[Agent Hooks](/guide/advanced/agent-hooks)**: Powerful extension capabilities
- **[Agent Protocol](/guide/advanced/agent-protocol)**: Standard format definitions for agent lifecycle

## Key Features

### 🔧 [Tool Call Engine](/guide/basic/tool-call-engine)
Support for multiple Tool Call engines including native Function Call, custom parsers, and models that don't support native Function Tool.

### 🌊 [Event Stream](/guide/basic/event-stream)
Built-in event stream processing with native streaming support and standardized Agent Protocol.

### 🧠 [Context Engineering](/guide/advanced/context-engineering)
Advanced context management for long-running agent operations with automatic context optimization.

### 🔌 [Agent Hooks](/guide/advanced/agent-hooks)
Extensible hook system for customizing agent behavior at every stage of execution.

## Architecture Overview

Tarko is built with a three-layer architecture:

1. **Engineering Layer**: CLI, Server, and UI components
2. **Application Layer**: Tarko-based Agent implementations
3. **Kernel Layer**: Core runtime with Context Engineering and Agent Protocol

## Who Uses Tarko?

Tarko powers several production systems:

- **[UI-TARS-2](https://seed-tars.com/showcase/ui-tars-2/)**: Advanced UI automation
- **[UI-TARS-desktop](https://github.com/bytedance/UI-TARS-desktop)**: Desktop automation
- **[Agent TARS](https://agent-tars.com/)**: General-purpose multimodal agent

## Documentation Overview

### Getting Started
- [Quick Start](/guide/get-started/quick-start) - Create your first Tarko agent in minutes
- [Architecture](/guide/get-started/architecture) - Understand Tarko's design principles
- [SDK Reference](/guide/get-started/sdk) - Complete API reference and examples

### Core Concepts
- [Configuration](/guide/basic/configuration) - Configure agents, models, and runtime settings
- [Model Providers](/guide/basic/model-provider) - OpenAI, Anthropic, Volcengine, and custom providers
- [Tools](/guide/basic/tools) - Create and register custom tools for your agents
- [Tool Call Engine](/guide/basic/tool-call-engine) - Native, prompt-engineering, and structured outputs
- [Event Stream](/guide/basic/event-stream) - Real-time agent execution monitoring

### Advanced Features
- [Agent Hooks](/guide/advanced/agent-hooks) - Customize agent behavior with lifecycle hooks
- [Agent Protocol](/guide/advanced/agent-protocol) - Standard communication protocol
- [Context Engineering](/guide/advanced/context-engineering) - Long-running agent context management
- [Agent Snapshot](/guide/advanced/agent-snapshot) - Save and replay agent execution states

### UI Integration
- [UI Integration](/guide/basic/ui-integration) - Build web interfaces for your agents


### Deployment
- [CLI Deployment](/guide/deployment/cli) - Command-line tools and scripts
- [Server Deployment](/guide/deployment/server) - Production server setup

### API Reference
- [Agent API](/api/agent) - Complete Agent class reference
- [Hooks API](/api/hooks) - Agent lifecycle hooks
- [Tool Call Engine API](/api/tool-call-engine) - Tool execution engines
- [Context Engineering API](/api/context-engineering) - Context management
- [Agent Server API](/api/agent-server) - Server endpoints and protocols

### Examples
- [Getting Started](/examples/getting-started) - Basic usage examples
- [Custom Tools](/examples/custom-tools) - Building domain-specific tools
- [Custom Hooks](/examples/custom-hooks) - Extending agent behavior
- [Server Integration](/examples/server-integration) - Web server integration
- [Protocol Integration](/examples/protocol-integration) - Custom protocol implementation

## Quick Navigation

**New to Tarko?** Start with [Quick Start](/guide/get-started/quick-start)

**Building agents?** Check out [SDK Reference](/guide/get-started/sdk) and [Tools](/guide/basic/tools)

**Need customization?** Explore [Agent Hooks](/guide/advanced/agent-hooks) and [Context Engineering](/guide/advanced/context-engineering)

**Deploying to production?** See [Server Deployment](/guide/deployment/server) and [Agent Snapshot](/guide/advanced/agent-snapshot)

**Building UI?** Start with [UI Integration](/guide/basic/ui-integration)
