Tekton is an open-source, Kubernetes-native framework for building CI/CD pipelines. It defines pipeline components as Kubernetes custom resources, meaning pipelines, tasks, and runs are all native Kubernetes objects. Each task step runs in a container within a pod, leveraging Kubernetes scheduling, scaling, and resource management. Tekton is a CDF project designed to be a building block for CI/CD systems.
Why Tekton Matters
Traditional CI/CD servers like Jenkins run as separate infrastructure that must be managed, scaled, and secured independently. Tekton runs natively on Kubernetes, meaning CI/CD pipelines benefit from the same scheduling, scaling, RBAC, and resource management as application workloads. This eliminates separate CI/CD infrastructure and integrates naturally with GitOps workflows.
Teams that understand and adopt tekton gain a significant operational advantage, reducing manual effort and improving the reliability and scalability of their infrastructure. As cloud-native adoption accelerates, familiarity with tekton has become a core competency for DevOps engineers, platform teams, and site reliability engineers working in production Kubernetes and cloud environments.
How Tekton Works
Tekton defines four core resources: Steps are individual container commands, Tasks are sequences of steps, Pipelines are sequences of tasks, and PipelineRuns trigger execution. When a PipelineRun is created, Tekton schedules pods for each task, executes steps as containers, and manages flow between tasks. Results and artifacts are passed between tasks through shared workspaces or result variables.
Understanding how tekton fits into the broader cloud-native ecosystem is important for making informed architecture decisions. It works alongside other tools and practices in the DevOps and platform engineering space, and choosing the right combination depends on your team’s specific requirements, scale, and operational maturity.
Key Features
Kubernetes-Native
Pipelines are Kubernetes custom resources managed with kubectl, RBAC, and standard Kubernetes tooling.
Reusable Components
Tasks and pipelines can be shared through Tekton Hub, a catalog of community-contributed CI/CD building blocks.
Container-Based Steps
Each step runs in its own container, providing full isolation and flexibility in tooling choices.
Event-Driven Triggers
Tekton Triggers listen for webhooks and events to automatically create PipelineRuns when code changes are detected.
Common Use Cases
Building Kubernetes-native CI/CD pipelines that run as pods in the same cluster as the applications they deploy.
Creating reusable task libraries that standardize build, test, and deployment steps across all teams.
Integrating CI/CD with GitOps by using Tekton to build images and Flux or Argo CD to deploy them.
Running CI/CD workloads without maintaining separate Jenkins or CI server infrastructure.
How Obsium Helps
Obsium’s DevOps solutions team helps organizations implement and optimize tekton as part of production-grade infrastructure. Whether you are adopting tekton for the first time or looking to improve an existing implementation, our engineers bring hands-on experience across cloud platforms and Kubernetes environments. Learn more about our DevOps solutions services →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Tekton?
Tekton is an open-source, Kubernetes-native framework for building CI/CD pipelines. It defines pipeline components as Kubernetes custom resources, meaning pipelines, tasks, and runs are all native Kubernetes objects.
How does Tekton work?
Tekton works by combining the components described in the sections above. The main page walks through the architecture, the typical use cases, and the trade-offs to weigh before adopting it.
Why does Tekton matter?
Teams adopt Tekton to ship faster, run more reliably, and reduce the cognitive load on engineers. The benefits, limits, and adjacent tools are covered in the body above.
When should you use Tekton?
Use Tekton when the problems it solves match what your team is hitting today. The page above outlines the signals that mean you should adopt it now, and the cases where a simpler approach is fine.
