> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.pipecat.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Introduction

> Build voice and multimodal AI agents with the Pipecat ecosystem.

Pipecat is an open source ecosystem for building voice and multimodal AI agents. It provides everything you need to create, deploy, and scale real-time AI applications that can see, hear, and speak.

## The Pipecat Ecosystem

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Pipecat" icon="cat" iconType="solid" href="/pipecat/get-started/introduction">
    Open source Python framework for building voice and multimodal AI pipelines.
    Orchestrate 100+ AI services with ultra-low latency.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pipecat Subagents" icon="users" href="/subagents/introduction">
    Multi-agent framework for Pipecat. Coordinate specialized agents with
    handoff, task dispatch, and distributed deployment.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pipecat Clients" icon="display" href="/client/introduction">
    Client SDKs for JavaScript, React, React Native, iOS, Android, and C++.
    Connect users to your agents via web and mobile.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pipecat Flows" icon="diagram-project" href="/pipecat-flows/introduction">
    Build structured conversations with defined paths and state management.
    Break complex tasks into focused steps for better LLM accuracy.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pipecat Cloud" icon="cloud" iconType="solid" href="/pipecat-cloud/introduction">
    Managed hosting platform for deploying and scaling Pipecat agents in
    production with built-in infrastructure.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## How It All Fits Together

A typical Pipecat application has a **client** and a **server**. The client connects users via browser, mobile app, or phone. The server runs a Pipecat pipeline that processes audio, runs LLMs, and generates speech in real-time. Your hosting provider — Pipecat Cloud or self-hosted — manages deployment and scales instances to handle concurrent sessions.

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/daily/CImcmUmDs-Bldzqh/images/pipecat-architecture.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=CImcmUmDs-Bldzqh&q=85&s=8b2f72670d099a95bd1a720ae58b6ff2" alt="Pipecat architecture" width="1912" height="694" data-path="images/pipecat-architecture.png" />
</Frame>

## Getting Started

<Steps>
  <Step title="Build your first agent">
    Follow the [Quickstart](/pipecat/get-started/quickstart) to create a voice
    AI bot in 5 minutes.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Learn core concepts">
    Work through the [Learning Pipecat](/pipecat/learn/overview) guide to
    understand pipelines, processors, and transports.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add a client">
    Connect users to your agent with a [Client SDK](/client/introduction) for
    web or mobile.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Deploy">
    Ship to production with [Pipecat Cloud](/pipecat-cloud/introduction) or
    [self-host](/pipecat/deployment/overview) on your own infrastructure.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Community

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Discord" icon="discord" href="https://discord.gg/pipecat">
    Connect with other developers, share projects, and get support.
  </Card>

  <Card title="GitHub" icon="github" href="https://github.com/pipecat-ai/pipecat">
    Explore the source code, open issues, and contribute.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>