%{
  title: "Getting started",
  description: "Choose the right path into Jido based on your background and start building.",
  category: :docs,
  legacy_paths: [],
  tags: [:docs, :getting_started],
  order: 10,
  menu_label: "Get Started",
  draft: false
}
---

## What you need

Jido runs on the Elixir/OTP platform. To build with Jido you need:

- **Elixir 1.18+** and **OTP 27+** ([install Elixir](https://elixir-lang.org/install.html))
- **A Mix project** - either a new one (`mix new my_app`) or an existing Elixir application
- **An LLM API key** (OpenAI, Anthropic, or similar) - only needed when you add AI features

Phoenix is not required. Jido works in any Elixir project. If you want to build web interfaces for your agents, Phoenix LiveView integrates naturally - but the core tutorials work with plain `iex` sessions.

## Choose your path

Pick the track that matches your background. Both paths lead to the same onboarding tutorials - they differ in how much context they provide before you start building.

### [I'm new to Elixir](/docs/getting-started/new-to-elixir)

You're coming from Python, TypeScript, Java, or another stack. You found Jido because you need reliable agent infrastructure. This path gives you the essential Elixir context you need to follow the tutorials and read Jido code confidently.

### [I know Elixir](/docs/getting-started/elixir-developers)

You've built OTP applications. You're comfortable with GenServer, supervision trees, and Mix. This path maps Jido's architecture to patterns you already know, then gets you into the tutorials fast.

## Where this takes you

Both paths feed into the same four-step onboarding ladder:

1. **[Installation and setup](/docs/getting-started/installation)** - add Jido to a project, configure dependencies, verify everything compiles
2. **[Your first agent](/docs/getting-started/first-agent)** - define an agent with typed state and actions, no LLM required
3. **[Your first LLM agent](/docs/getting-started/first-llm-agent)** - wire up an LLM so your agent can reason about instructions
4. **[Build your first workflow](/docs/learn/first-workflow)** - compose actions into a multi-step workflow that runs as a single unit

Each tutorial builds on the last and takes under fifteen minutes.

## After getting started

Once you finish the onboarding path:

- **[Concepts](/docs/concepts)** - the most comprehensive section of the docs. Authoritative explanations of every Jido primitive: Agents, Actions, Signals, Directives, Strategies, and more. Read these alongside or after the tutorials.
- **[Learn](/docs/learn)** - structured training modules that go deeper on specific topics
- **[Guides](/docs/guides)** - task-oriented recipes for production patterns

## Next steps

- [I'm new to Elixir](/docs/getting-started/new-to-elixir) - get the Elixir foundations first
- [I know Elixir](/docs/getting-started/elixir-developers) - jump in with OTP context
- [Explore core concepts](/docs/concepts) - understand the architecture before you build