Getting Started

Get TEN Agent up and running in three simple steps.

Get TEN Agent up and running in just three steps.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have the following ready:

You'll need accounts and API keys from these services:

  • Agora - App ID and App Certificate (free minutes every month)
  • OpenAI - API key (or any compatible LLM)
  • Deepgram - ASR key (free credits available with signup)
  • ElevenLabs - TTS key (free credits available with signup)

Install these tools on your machine:

Minimum hardware requirements:

  • CPU: 2 cores or more
  • RAM: 4 GB or more

macOS: Docker setting on Apple Silicon

Uncheck "Use Rosetta for x86/amd64 emulation" in Docker settings. This may result in slower build times on ARM, but performance will be normal when deployed to x64 servers.

Build the Agent

Clone and configure

Clone the repository and set up your environment variables:

Terminal
git clone https://github.com/TEN-framework/ten-framework.git

cd ai_agents

cp ./.env.example ./.env

Add your API keys

Open .env and fill in your API keys:

.env
# Agora credentials
AGORA_APP_ID=your_app_id_here
AGORA_APP_CERTIFICATE=your_certificate_here

# ElevenLabs TTS
ELEVENLABS_TTS_KEY=your_key_here

# OpenAI
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_key_here

# Deepgram ASR
DEEPGRAM_API_KEY=your_key_here

Start development containers

Terminal
docker compose up -d

Build and run the agent

Enter the container and build the default voice assistant:

Terminal
docker exec -it ten_agent_dev bash

Inside the container:

Inside Container
# Navigate to the voice assistant example
cd agents/examples/voice-assistant

# Install dependencies and build (~5-8 minutes)
task install

# Start the agent
task run

The frontend will be available at http://localhost:3000

Want to try other examples?

Check the /examples folder for more agent configurations:

cd agents/examples/<example_name>
task install

Customize with TMAN Designer

Use the visual designer to customize your agent:

  1. Open localhost:49483 in your browser
  2. Right-click to load a graph (e.g., Voice Assistant)
  3. Configure API keys and preferences for each extension
  4. Right-click and select Manage Apps to open the Apps Manager
  5. Click Run App to start your customized TEN Agent

If you already configured API keys in the .env file, you can skip step 3.

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Getting Started | TEN Framework