Quickstart

This guide helps you get started with Instill Core, whether you're self-hosting the Community Edition or using the fully managed platform.

Editions

Instill Core is available in two editions:

Instill Core CE (Community Edition) – An open-source, self-hosted version available on GitHub. Ideal for developers and teams who want to run and manage the platform independently.
Instill Core (Enterprise Edition) – A fully managed, cloud-hosted service maintained by Instill AI. Perfect for teams that want a production-ready experience without managing infrastructure.

Both editions share the same core architecture and capabilities.

Run Instill Core CE on your local machine or infrastructure using Docker Compose.

To launch:

git clone -b $VERSION https://github.com/instill-ai/instill-core.git && cd instill-core
make all

Replace $VERSION with the latest release tag. Once running, the Console UI will be available at http://localhost:3000.

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If you switch versions later, run make build-latest instead of make all to rebuild images.

To stop and clean up all resources:

make down

For Kubernetes, CLI-based deployment, or advanced setup, refer to our Deployment Guide.

The fully managed version of Instill Core is hosted and operated by the Instill AI team. It includes:

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To request access to Instill Core (EE), please sign up for early access.

Now that you're set up, dive into the platform's core capabilities:

Artifact

Parse and structure files into an AI-ready, RAG-compatible Catalog.

Pipeline

Build modular pipelines to automate unstructured data ETL and AI workflows.

Model

Serve, orchestrate and monitor AI models across your workflows

Explore practical examples, product recipes, and how-tos:

These resources demonstrate how to build real-world applications with Instill Core CE or EE.