---
type: concept
title: "Agent Deployment"
description: "Getting agents to production, containerizing, networking, reverse-proxying, and choosing a provider-agnostic, cost-predictable host."
tags: [deployment, docker, hosting, production, cloud, cli, gcp, scaling]
videos: [googles-agents-cli-the-cli-skills-combination-to-ship-ai-agents-easily, build-render-entire-videos-with-claude-code-full-workflow, parallel-claude-code-git-worktrees-this-setup-will-change-how-you-ship, learn-90-of-building-ai-agents-in-30-minutes, build-your-first-voice-ai-agent-in-20-minutes-with-livekit-open-source, build-and-ship-any-mcp-server-in-minutes-full-guide, ive-been-holding-back-on-youtube-but-not-anymore, how-id-learn-ai-agents-fast-if-i-had-to-start-over-full-roadmap, if-youre-serious-about-building-ai-agents-this-is-your-secret-weapon, create-your-own-private-local-ai-cloud-stack-in-under-20-minutes, run-supabase-100-locally-for-your-ai-agents, deploying-billions-of-ai-agents-is-easier-than-you-think, the-glow-up-every-ai-agent-needs, revealing-my-complete-ai-agent-blueprint, flowise-n8n-the-best-no-code-local-ai-agent-combo, the-king-of-no-code-ai-agent-builders, were-taking-this-ai-coding-assistant-to-the-moon-plus-installation-instructions, use-open-webui-with-your-n8n-ai-agents-voice-chat-included, deploy-any-ai-app-to-the-cloud-fast, the-hard-truth-about-hosting-your-own-llms, bubble-is-my-biggest-regret-for-no-code-ai-apps-what-i-use-instead, local-vs-cloud-llmsrag-lets-finally-end-this-debate, this-rag-ai-agent-with-n8n-supabase-is-the-real-deal, complete-guide-to-langserve-make-your-ai-agent-actually-useful, youre-wasting-time-coding-your-ai-agents, ai-agents-just-got-sexy-ai-agents-masterclass-3, the-only-ai-developer-roadmap-you-need-in-2024, use-chatgpt-in-two-clicks-on-any-website-with-a-custom-chrome-extension]
created: 2026-07-21
updated: 2026-07-21
---

# Agent Deployment

Agent deployment is the final leg of the build: taking an agent that runs on your machine and getting it running in the cloud where real users can reach it. Cole frames it as one continuous arc, "I go from planning an agent to prototyping it to building it out in code with an AI coding assistant and containerizing it and deploying it and securing it and scaling it, going through that entire process." [0:06:30] The reason it is non-optional: "you cannot be stuck running your AI agents on your local computer Forever at some point you need to deploy it to the cloud so it's running 247 and can scale as well." [0:00:33] Anything less is "just building toys or simple automations." [0:07:20]

The foundational tool is Docker. "The key for me for deploying my AI agents to production is to use a tool called Docker. This is where I can containerize my agents into an isolated environment that I can then deploy anywhere in the cloud." [0:12:36] Containerization solves the "wrong version of python... right packages installed" problem [0:04:15] by giving you "this deterministic set of steps to get everything set up for your agent and then execute it at the end so you have this perfect little isolated environment that you can put anywhere." [0:05:11] The requirements are modest, "for most use cases, just like a couple of vCPUs and a few gigabytes of RAM is all you need to run an AI agent." [0:28:15] Runtime shape follows the workload: a "background agent that runs on a data set periodically" fits a serverless function, while a "conversational agent you run it in a docker container also with a front-end application." [0:27:28]

Hosting choices trade convenience against cost and control. Cole prefers **predictable infrastructure pricing** over per-call billing: "you are guaranteed that that is what you pay for the month no matter how many times users refresh your page... it is 100% predictable." [0:03:38] For scale below ~1,000 users, "going with managed Services can actually be cheaper" [0:07:37], and he deliberately mirrors local and managed stack names so "it can be really easy to go from a POC with managed services to a production application using more local things." [0:05:33] New CLIs compress the whole flow, with Google's Agents CLI, "to deploy this agent all we have to say is deploy this agent" [0:12:16], and LiveKit will "go ahead and create the Docker file and deploy everything to the LiveKit cloud." [0:17:16] And a deployed agent should never fly blind: "I would highly recommend against deploying any AI agent into production without having a platform like Langfuse backing you up." [0:27:11]

## Part of

- [Agent Development Lifecycle](./agent-development-lifecycle.md)

## Builds on

- [Containerization & Docker Networking](./containerization.md)
- [Agent as an API Endpoint](./agent-as-api-endpoint.md)

## Related

- [Securing Agent APIs](./api-security.md)
- [Agent Security](./agent-security.md)
- [Agent Observability](./agent-observability.md)
- [Local & Self-Hosted AI](./local-ai.md)
- [Reverse Proxy](./reverse-proxy.md)
- [Custom Domain via DNS A Record](./custom-domain-dns.md)
- [HTTPS via Certbot / Let's Encrypt](./ssl-tls.md)
- [No-Code AI Agents](./no-code-agents.md)
- [Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)](./rag.md)
- [Everyday AI Coding Use Cases](./ai-coding-use-cases.md)
- [Capabilities Over Tools](./capabilities-over-tools.md)
- [Code Execution](./code-execution.md)
- [Generative UI](./generative-ui.md)

## Tools

- [Retool](../entities/tools/retool.md) - Internal-app platform that imports React code and connects to a database to deploy dashboards with a governed, permissioned, audit-trailed path to production.
- [Docker](../entities/tools/docker.md) - Cole's default way to containerize an agent for deployment anywhere.
- [FastAPI](../entities/tools/fastapi.md) - the API layer a deployed agent usually sits behind.
- [Caddy](../entities/tools/caddy.md) - managed HTTPS/TLS reverse proxy for secure cloud endpoints.
- [Render](../entities/tools/render.md) - a low-cost managed host for running an agent 24/7.
- [Langfuse](../entities/tools/langfuse.md) - observability Cole insists on before any production deploy.
- [Supabase](../entities/tools/supabase.md) - the database, run in-network alongside the agent's container.
- [n8n](../entities/tools/n8n.md) - a no-code runtime deployed the same containerized way.
- [DigitalOcean](../entities/organizations/digital-ocean.md) - a common droplet/app-platform target for deployment.
- [Groq](../entities/organizations/groq.md) - pay-per-token inference that scales down cost before self-hosting.
- [Nginx](../entities/tools/nginx.md) - Open-source web server used as the reverse proxy that maps a public URL and domain to a local app's port, with configs symlinked from sites-available to sites-enabled and validated with nginx -t.
- [Node.js](../entities/tools/nodejs.md) - JavaScript runtime used as an install prerequisite, whose npm scripts act as optional convenience wrappers around the underlying Docker build and run commands.
- [OpenTelemetry](../entities/tools/opentelemetry.md) - The open telemetry standard that agent frameworks (Pydantic AI via Logfire) emit traces through, letting any compatible backend such as Langfuse ingest them without vendor lock-in.
- [Coinbase x402](../entities/tools/x402.md) - Coinbase's payment protocol for exposing AI agents over the internet that charge other agents per use, settled in stablecoins like USDC.
- [Vertex AI](../entities/tools/vertex-ai.md) - Google's cloud AI platform offering powerful agent capabilities out of the box, recommended in Google's agent white paper.

## Sources

- [How I'd Learn AI Agents FAST if I Had to Start Over (Full Roadmap)](../sources/how-id-learn-ai-agents-fast-if-i-had-to-start-over-full-roadmap.md) - "[0:12:36] the key for me for deploying my AI agents to production is to use a tool called Docker. This is where I can containerize my agents into an isolated environment that I can then deploy anywhere in the cloud"
- [Learn 90% of Building AI Agents in 30 Minutes](../sources/learn-90-of-building-ai-agents-in-30-minutes.md) - "[0:26:35] you should always think about how you can build your AI agent to run as a Docker container"
- [Deploying Billions of AI Agents is Easier than You Think](../sources/deploying-billions-of-ai-agents-is-easier-than-you-think.md) - "[0:05:11] if only there was a way to package everything together in a neat way where you have this deterministic set of steps to get everything set up for your agent and then execute it at the end so you have this perfect little isolated environment that you can put anywhere"
- [I've Been Holding Back on YouTube... But Not Anymore](../sources/ive-been-holding-back-on-youtube-but-not-anymore.md) - "[0:06:30] I go from planning an agent to prototyping it to building it out in code with an AI coding assistant and containerizing it and deploying it and securing it and scaling it, going through that entire process"
- [COMPLETE Guide to LangServe - Make Your AI Agent Actually Useful](../sources/complete-guide-to-langserve-make-your-ai-agent-actually-useful.md) - "[0:00:33] you cannot be stuck running your AI agents on your local computer Forever at some point you need to deploy it to the cloud so it's running 247 and can scale as well"
- [Deploy ANY AI App to the Cloud FAST](../sources/deploy-any-ai-app-to-the-cloud-fast.md) - "[0:00:32] when you want something for real that has other users on your platform it cannot be stuck in your development environment simply put you have to make it accessible on the internet"
- [Google's Agents CLI: The CLI + Skills Combination to Ship AI Agents EASILY](../sources/googles-agents-cli-the-cli-skills-combination-to-ship-ai-agents-easily.md) - "[0:12:16] now to deploy this agent all we have to say is deploy this agent, right? Like that simple. It's going to load the skill, it's going to go through the full process getting this deployed to the Google Cloud."
- [Build Your First Voice AI Agent in 20 Minutes with LiveKit (Open Source)](../sources/build-your-first-voice-ai-agent-in-20-minutes-with-livekit-open-source.md) - "[0:17:16] Now, it's going to go ahead and create the Docker file and deploy everything to the LiveKit cloud and will be immediately usable for us."
- [Revealing my COMPLETE AI Agent Blueprint](../sources/revealing-my-complete-ai-agent-blueprint.md) - "[0:10:13] my simple recommendation here is to containerize your agent with Docker"
- [If You're Serious About Building AI Agents, This is Your Secret Weapon](../sources/if-youre-serious-about-building-ai-agents-this-is-your-secret-weapon.md) - "[0:27:11] I would highly recommend against deploying any AI agent into production without having a platform like Langfuse backing you up."
- [Bubble is My BIGGEST Regret for No Code AI Apps - What I Use Instead](../sources/bubble-is-my-biggest-regret-for-no-code-ai-apps-what-i-use-instead.md) - "[0:03:38] you are guaranteed that that is what you pay for the month no matter how many times users refresh your page and make calls to your apis or your databases and so it is 100% predictable"
- [Local vs. Cloud LLMs/RAG - Let's FINALLY End this Debate](../sources/local-vs-cloud-llmsrag-lets-finally-end-this-debate.md) - "[0:05:33] it can be really easy to go from a POC with managed services to a production application using more local things"
- [The HARD Truth About Hosting Your Own LLMs](../sources/the-hard-truth-about-hosting-your-own-llms.md) - "[0:02:19] what you can do is pay per token with these same self-hostable models in an incredibly cheap way and then later on when the Price Is Right scale to hosting these exact same models yourself"
- [The GLOW-UP Every AI Agent Needs](../sources/the-glow-up-every-ai-agent-needs.md) - "[0:01:57] a super concise and still powerful intro into building our AI agent into something that can actually be productionize as an API endpoint with a front end"
- [Create Your Own Private Local AI Cloud Stack in Under 20 Minutes](../sources/create-your-own-private-local-ai-cloud-stack-in-under-20-minutes.md) - "[0:02:31] I included caddy now which is managed https and TLS so this is how we can have secure endpoints for all of our services that we have running in the clouds"
- [Run Supabase 100% LOCALLY for Your AI Agents](../sources/run-supabase-100-locally-for-your-ai-agents.md) - "[0:21:51] since these containers like n8n and Supabase are all in the same Docker Network we can connect to it by just referencing the name of the container as the actual host"
- [Build + Render ENTIRE Videos with Claude Code (Full Workflow)](../sources/build-render-entire-videos-with-claude-code-full-workflow.md) - "[0:07:36] we're going to start by creating a unique identifier for the video. This is so we can create an isolated environment to manage everything"
- [Parallel Claude Code + Git Worktrees: This Setup Will Change How You Ship](../sources/parallel-claude-code-git-worktrees-this-setup-will-change-how-you-ship.md) - "[0:18:56] we essentially have not just codebase isolation with work trees but now we have database isolation as well."
- [Build and Ship Any MCP Server in MINUTES (Full Guide)](../sources/build-and-ship-any-mcp-server-in-minutes-full-guide.md) - "[0:16:42] As a part of our lifespan, we want to close our database down gracefully whenever we exit the server so we don't have memory leaks."
- [The KING of No Code AI Agent Builders?!](../sources/the-king-of-no-code-ai-agent-builders.md) - "[0:00:48] voice flow agents can be turn into an embeddable chat widget on your website or an API endpoint so deploying them is really easy and customizable"
- [Flowise + n8n - The BEST No Code + Local AI Agent Combo](../sources/flowise-n8n-the-best-no-code-local-ai-agent-combo.md) - "[0:20:23] when you need one container to talk to another you have to reference the container name"
- [Use Open WebUI with Your N8N AI Agents - Voice Chat Included!](../sources/use-open-webui-with-your-n8n-ai-agents-voice-chat-included.md) - "[0:19:47] the way that the containers communicate with each other is based on the container name so you don't actually use Local Host"
- [We're Taking this AI Coding Assistant to the MOON [Plus Installation Instructions!]](../sources/were-taking-this-ai-coding-assistant-to-the-moon-plus-installation-instructions.md) - "[0:08:48] when you run the container you're guaranteed to have the exact same setup as someone like me who has [it] working perfectly fine"
- [This RAG AI Agent with n8n + Supabase is the Real Deal](../sources/this-rag-ai-agent-with-n8n-supabase-is-the-real-deal.md) - "[0:00:15] you're going to run into issues as your knowledge base grows your documents get updated and users on your app ask questions that you didn't expect or test"
- [You're WASTING TIME Coding Your AI Agents](../sources/youre-wasting-time-coding-your-ai-agents.md) - "[0:08:30] I've also set this up with Streamlit so I can literally just call this entire NN workflow as an API and get the response back to display to UI"
- [AI Agents Just Got Sexy - AI Agents Masterclass #3](../sources/ai-agents-just-got-sexy-ai-agents-masterclass-3.md) - "[0:08:09] you can deploy this in like a couple of clicks it's so easy to deploy Streamlit applications"
- [The ONLY AI Developer Roadmap You Need in 2024](../sources/the-only-ai-developer-roadmap-you-need-in-2024.md) - "[0:12:11] deploying it out to the cloud so that you don't just have it running on your laptop forever"
- [Use ChatGPT in Two Clicks on ANY website with a Custom Chrome Extension](../sources/use-chatgpt-in-two-clicks-on-any-website-with-a-custom-chrome-extension.md) - "[0:20:46] you'll have to actually make the API out there somewhere on the internet not just running on your computer"
