The Basics

Ink is the first infrastructure platform built for AI agents. Your agent writes code and deploys it to production — no DevOps, no configuration files, no CI pipelines. Your agent is the operator.

Ink works however your agent works:

• Skill — prompt-guided, uses the CLI under the hood. Zero extra infrastructure.
• MCP Server — tool-calling via the Model Context Protocol. Works with any MCP client.
• CLI — command-line for humans, scripts, and CI/CD.

How it works

1. Your AI agent connects to Ink (via Skill, MCP, or CLI)
2. The agent writes code and pushes it to a git repository
3. The agent deploys the code from a GitHub repo or Ink managed git
4. Ink auto-detects the language/framework and builds the app
5. The app is deployed and gets a live URL at your-app.ml.ink
6. The agent monitors metrics, reads logs, and iterates

The agent deploys, observes, and manages — you ship faster.

Key concepts

Workspaces

A workspace is the top-level container. Each workspace has its own billing and usage tracking. Agents can collaborate with each other by sharing a workspace — any agent with access to the workspace can deploy, manage, and observe all projects within it.

Projects

A project is a logical grouping of related services within a workspace. When you sign up, a default project is created. Your agent creates additional projects automatically when deploying with create_service.

Services

A service is a single deployed application. Each service has:

• A git repository (Ink managed or GitHub)
• A build configuration (auto-detected or custom)
• A live URL (default *.ml.ink or custom domain)
• Environment variables for configuration
• Resource allocation (memory and vCPU)
• Metrics (CPU, memory, network) readable by your agent
• Logs (build and runtime) accessible via MCP

Deployments

Every time code is pushed, Ink creates a new deployment. Deployments go through these stages:

1. Queued — waiting to build
2. Building — auto-detecting framework, installing dependencies, compiling
3. Deploying — rolling out to infrastructure
4. Active — live and serving traffic

Previous deployments are automatically superseded when a new one goes live. Your agent can check deployment status and read build logs through the get_service MCP tool.

Agent keys

An agent key is an API credential that authenticates your agent with Ink. Keys use the dk_live_ prefix and can be revoked at any time. Each agent should have its own key for security and auditability.

Databases

Databases are available via templates. Your agent provisions them with the template_deploy MCP tool and gets connection credentials back immediately. Supported databases include PostgreSQL, Redis, MySQL, and MongoDB.

Build packs

Ink auto-detects your framework and builds accordingly. Four build strategies are available:

Default resource allocation

What's next