What is Argo? An Introduction to Kubernetes’ Most Powerful Tools
Daniel Hoang
At Akuity, we’re proud to be the company founded by the creators of Argo—an open-source suite of tools that was originally developed to unlock the full potential of Kubernetes. The Argo Project isn’t just one tool; it’s a suite of interoperable components (Argo CD, Argo Workflows, Argo Rollouts, and Argo Events) designed to simplify continuous delivery, workflow automation, and event-driven operations. Whether you’re new to Kubernetes or a seasoned pro, Argo helps streamline complex deployments and enables GitOps at scale.
What is Argo?
Argo is a powerful suite of open-source tools designed to streamline Kubernetes workflows and simplify cluster management. Created by the team behind Akuity, Argo offers a Kubernetes-native solution for continuous delivery (CD), workflow automation, and GitOps—making it a critical tool for modern, cloud-native applications.
What is Argo Used For?
At its core, Argo enables teams to automate and scale their Kubernetes operations efficiently. Whether you're managing data pipelines, deploying applications, or automating workflows, Argo provides the flexibility and control needed to support the dynamic needs of today’s software delivery.
In this guide, we’ll introduce the key components of Argo, including Argo CD, Argo Workflows, Argo Rollouts, and Argo Events, and explain how each tool can help you optimize your Kubernetes workflows.
A Bit of Argo's History and Inspiration
The name "Argo" and its mascot, an octopus, have unique origins tied to both mythology and the natural world. As Jesse Suen, Argo Project Lead and Akuity Co-founder, explains:
"Argo was named after the ship Argo in Greek mythology, which carried the Greek mythological hero Jason and the Argonauts on their quest for the Golden Fleece. An argonaut also happens to be a species of pelagic octopi, and so we used an octopus as our open source project mascot. Argonauts are groups of hard-working deep-sea octopuses that traverse undersea and perform numerous tasks critical to marine biology."
What Are the Core Components of Argo?
The Argo Project includes four purpose-built tools that each address a different challenge in deploying and operating applications on Kubernetes:
Argo CD for declarative, GitOps-based continuous delivery
Argo Workflows for orchestrating complex container-native jobs
Argo Rollouts for advanced progressive delivery strategies
Argo Events for event-driven automation across your Kubernetes stack
In the next sections, we’ll walk through what each tool is, what problems it solves, and how they can be used individually or together to power modern, scalable delivery pipelines.
Argo CD: GitOps Continuous Delivery Tool for Kubernetes
Argo CD is perhaps the most well-known tool within the Argo project. It was created at Intuit to handle deployments to Kubernetes at scale. The mission at the time was to migrate from physical data centers to Kubernetes on AWS. The creators (Alexander Matyushentsev and Jesse Suen) were unable to find a Kubernetes-native solution that fit the needs of a large enterprise, so Argo CD was born. It was decided to use a GitOps approach for deployments since as a financial company, there are many regulatory and compliance requirements that GitOps helps solve.
Key Features & Use Cases
Manifest Application & Monitoring: Helps you apply manifest from repo to cluster, and continuously monitors the repo (GitOps).
Common Use Cases: Typically used for infrastructure & application deployment.
Want to go deeper with Argo CD?
If you're new to Argo CD or want a more comprehensive walkthrough, check out our introductory video and in-depth blog post. You’ll learn how Argo CD works, why it matters for GitOps, and how to use it effectively in your Kubernetes environment.
Argo Workflows: Orchestrating Jobs on Kubernetes
Argo Workflows was actually the first Argo project and was created at Applatix when Hong Wang, Jesse Suen, and Alexander Matyushentsev were at Applatix. Argo Workflows extends the Kubernetes API with a new Workflow CRD (Custom Resource Definition). A Workflow is a very extensible batch resource (similar to a Kubernete Job) that can be used for many applications, however, many companies have realized how to take advantage of Argo Workflows in ML & Data pipelines.
Key Features & Use Cases
Pod-Based Workflow Steps: Every step in a workflow is a pod, made up of several containers.
Common Use Cases: Typically used for data processing & automation (Fan-out fan-in).
Adoption by Leading Companies: Companies like Ant Group & CERN use Argo to process data.
Replacing Legacy Tools: Argo Workflows is rapidly replacing tools like Apache Airflow.
Argo Rollouts: Progressive Delivery Controller for Kubernetes
Argo Rollouts was another tool born out of necessity due to Kubernetes' lack of more sophisticated deployment strategies. The requirement to perform blue-green and canary deployments on Kubernetes prompted creators Alexander Matyushentsev, Danny Thomson, and Jesse Suen to develop a more sophisticated workload controller. Argo Rollouts replaces the Deployment resource with a more advanced Rollout resource. As companies continued to scale and have requirements for better customer experience and SLA's, the need for complex deployment strategies came.
Key Features & Use Cases
Blue/Green and Canary Updates: It provides blue/green and canary update strategies.
Integration with Service Meshes & Ingress Controllers: Integrates with service meshes & ingress controllers to shape traffic.
Automated Promotion & Rollback: Automates promotion and rollback based on analysis.
Production-Ready Deployments: Used to safely deploy artifacts into Production.
Argo Events: An event-based dependency manager for Kubernetes
Argo Events was originally created to be a lightweight, Kubernetes native mechanism to automatically trigger Argo Workflows in response to events such as time, new object detection, commits, messages, and more. This could be used for simple use cases to elegantly trigger workflows based on results, but also be used for complex ML (Machine Learning) or data-centric use cases.
Key Features & Use Cases
Event-Based Dependency Management: Argo Events was a special project was that was donated to Argo from BlackRock.
Adoption & Contribution: Event-based dependency manager which is normally used to trigger Argo Workflows, but can trigger any Kubernetes resources.
Get Help with Argo from Akuity Experts
As the company founded by the creators of Argo, Akuity is uniquely positioned to help you maximize the power of Argo in your software delivery process. Whether you’re just getting started or need advanced support to scale your operations, Akuity offers unparalleled expertise and support tailored to your needs.
We provide:
Professional Support: Our team of Argo experts is available to assist with troubleshooting, optimizations, and best practices, ensuring you get the most out of Argo’s powerful suite of tools.
Enterprise Solutions: Akuity delivers enterprise-grade solutions designed to scale with your needs, including prioritized patches, custom configurations, and guaranteed SLAs for mission-critical operations.
Training & Consultation: Whether you’re implementing Argo for the first time or need advanced guidance, Akuity offers hands-on training (such as our Introduction to Continuous Delivery and GitOps using Argo CD Course) and tailored webinars to help you succeed.
Have Questions or Need Assistance?
If you have any questions or need help implementing Argo, don’t hesitate to reach out. Our team at Akuity is always here to support you. Feel free to connect with me on Twitter @dhpup or contact us through our support page for personalized assistance.
Additional Argo Resources
Loved this blog? Get the most out of your Argo CD learning experience with these neat resources:
[Blog Post]: Unlocking Ultimate Argo CD Security
[Blog Post]: Unlocking Ultimate Argo CD Flexibility
[Blog Post] Unlocking Ultimate Argo CD Scalability
[Blog Post] Deployment Made Easy with Argo CD
Key Takeaways
Argo is a suite of open-source tools built for modern Kubernetes operations, created by the team behind Akuity.
The ecosystem includes Argo CD, Argo Workflows, Argo Rollouts, and Argo Events—each solving a distinct delivery or orchestration challenge.
These tools are designed to work independently or together to power scalable, declarative, and automated software delivery pipelines.
Akuity provides enterprise-grade support, training, and solutions to help teams adopt and scale Argo effectively.
FAQs About Argo
Q: What is the Argo Project in Kubernetes?
A: The Argo Project is a collection of CNCF-graduated tools built to simplify Kubernetes-native continuous delivery, workflow automation, progressive delivery, and event handling.
Q: What’s the difference between Argo and Argo CD?
A: Argo refers to the full ecosystem of tools. Argo CD is a specific component that handles continuous delivery using GitOps principles.
Q: Who created the Argo Project?
A: The Argo Project was created by the team that went on to found Akuity. Core contributors include Jesse Suen, Alexander Matyushentsev, Hong Wang, and Danny Thomson; leaders in the Kubernetes and GitOps space who helped shape the future of cloud-native delivery.
Q: Can I use Argo tools separately?
A: Yes each tool (Argo CD, Workflows, Rollouts, Events) can be used independently, but they are also designed to work seamlessly together.
Q: Is Argo only for advanced Kubernetes teams?
A: Not at all. While Argo supports complex use cases, it’s also a great entry point for teams just getting started with Kubernetes and GitOps.
