Overview
LiveKit Agents provides modular components for structuring agent logic into focused, maintainable units that perform accurately and consistently in complex real-world scenarios. Use sessions, workflows, tasks, and tools to break down agent behavior, enabling reliable production applications that handle nuanced conversations, multi-step processes, and external integrations with precision.
Logic and structure components
Use core components to structure your agent logic, including sessions, workflows, customization points, and external integrations. Build simple single-agent applications, or combine these components for complex, multi-agent workflows.
| Component | Description | Use cases |
|---|---|---|
| Agent sessions | Orchestrate input collection, pipeline management, and output delivery. The main orchestrator for your voice AI app. | Single-agent apps, session lifecycle management, and room I/O configuration. |
| Tasks & task groups | Create focused, reusable units that perform specific objectives and return typed results. Tasks run inside agents and take temporary control until completion. | Consent collection, structured data capture, and multi-step processes with task groups. |
| Workflows | Model repeatable patterns with agents, handoffs, and tasks for complex voice AI systems. | Multi-persona systems, conversation phase management, and specialized agent routing. |
| Tool definition & use | Extend agent capabilities with custom functions callable by the LLM for external actions and data access. | API integrations, frontend RPC calls, and triggering agent handoffs. |
| Pipeline nodes & hooks | Customize agent behavior at pipeline processing points with custom STT, LLM, TTS, and lifecycle hooks. Override nodes to modify input, output, or add custom logic. | Custom providers, output modification, and pronunciation control. |
| Turn detection & interruptions | Manage conversation flow with turn detection, interruption handling, and manual turn control. | Natural conversation timing, interruption management, and push-to-talk interfaces. |
| Agents & handoffs | Define distinct reasoning behaviors and transfer control between agents when different capabilities are needed. | Role-based agents, model specialization, and permission management. |
| External data & RAG | Connect agents to external data sources, databases, and APIs for RAG and data operations. Load initial context, perform RAG lookups, and integrate with external services. | Knowledge base search, user profile loading, and database operations. |
In this section
Read more about each component.
Agent sessions
Main orchestrator for input collection, pipeline management, and output delivery.
Tasks & task groups
Focused units that perform specific objectives and return typed results.
Workflows
Model repeatable patterns with agents, handoffs, and tasks.
Tool definition & use
Custom functions callable by the LLM for external actions.
Pipeline nodes & hooks
Customize behavior at pipeline processing points.
Turn detection & interruptions
Manage conversation flow with turn detection and interruption handling.
Agents & handoffs
Define distinct agents and transfer control between them.
External data & RAG
Connect to external data sources, databases, and APIs.