Dash

A self-learning data agent built with systems engineering principles. It grounds answers in 6 layers of context and improves with every query.

Chat with Dash via Slack, the terminal, or the AgentOS web UI.

Quick Start

# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/agno-agi/dash.git && cd dash

cp example.env .env
# Edit .env and add your OPENAI_API_KEY

# Start the system
docker compose up -d --build

# Generate sample data and load knowledge
docker exec -it dash-api python scripts/generate_data.py
docker exec -it dash-api python scripts/load_knowledge.py

Confirm Dash is running at http://localhost:8000/docs.

Connect to the Web UI

1. Open os.agno.com and login
2. Add OS → Local → http://localhost:8000
3. Click "Connect"

Try it (SaaS metrics dataset):

• What's our current MRR?
• Which plan has the highest churn rate?
• Show me revenue trends by plan over the last 6 months
• Which customers are at risk of churning?

Deploy to Railway

Railway deployment uses .env.production to keep production credentials separate from local dev.

cp example.env .env.production
# Edit .env.production — set OPENAI_API_KEY

Step 1: Deploy infrastructure

This creates the Railway project, database, and app service. The app will crash-loop until the JWT key is added in the next step — that's expected.

railway login
./scripts/railway_up.sh

Step 2: Get your JWT key

Production requires a JWT_VERIFICATION_KEY from AgentOS. You need the Railway domain from step 1 to set this up.

1. Copy your Railway domain from the output of step 1 (e.g. dash-production-xxxx.up.railway.app)
2. Open os.agno.com and login
3. Add OS → Live → paste your Railway URL
4. Go to Settings and generate a key pair
5. Add the public key to .env.production (wrap in single quotes):

JWT_VERIFICATION_KEY='-----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY-----
MIIBIjANBgkq...
-----END PUBLIC KEY-----'

Step 3: Push environment and redeploy

./scripts/railway_env.sh
./scripts/railway_redeploy.sh

railway_env.sh reads .env.production and sets each variable on the Railway service. Safe to run repeatedly. Handles multiline values (PEM keys) correctly.

Production operations

Database scripts must run inside Railway's network (the internal hostname pgvector.railway.internal isn't reachable from your local machine). Use SSH to connect to the running container:

railway ssh --service dash
# Inside the container:
python scripts/generate_data.py
python scripts/load_knowledge.py

Other operations run locally:

railway logs --service dash
railway open

Why Dash Exists

Ask a question in English, get a correct, meaningful answer. That's the goal. But raw LLMs writing SQL hit a wall fast: schemas lack meaning, types are misleading, tribal knowledge is missing, there's no way to learn from mistakes, and results lack interpretation.

The root cause is missing context and missing memory. Dash solves this with six layers of grounded context, a self-learning loop that improves with every query, and a focus on delivering insights you can act on.

Architecture: Five Layers, One System

Agentic software is just software with the business logic replaced by agents. Everything else is systems engineering. Dash is built across five layers that reinforce each other.

Agent Engineering     →  dash/team.py + dash/agents/
Data Engineering      →  knowledge/ + Agno Learning Machine + PostgreSQL
Security Engineering  →  AgentOS auth + RBAC + read-only SQL enforcement
Interface Engineering →  app/main.py (FastAPI) + Slack + AgentOS
Infrastructure        →  Dockerfile + compose.yaml + scripts/

1. Agent Engineering

The agent team and execution flow. Model, instructions, tools, knowledge, and the self-learning loop.

AgentOS (app/main.py)  [scheduler=True, tracing=True]
 ├── FastAPI / Uvicorn
 ├── Slack Interface (optional)
 └── Dash Team (dash/team.py, coordinate mode)
     ├─ Analyst (dash/agents/analyst.py)         reads public + dash
     │  ├─ SQLTools (read-only)  → public schema (company data)
     │  ├─ introspect_schema     → both schemas
     │  ├─ save_validated_query  → knowledge base
     │  └─ ReasoningTools
     ├─ Engineer (dash/agents/engineer.py)       reads public, writes dash
     │  ├─ SQLTools (full)       → dash schema (agent-managed)
     │  ├─ introspect_schema     → both schemas
     │  ├─ update_knowledge      → knowledge base (schema changes)
     │  └─ ReasoningTools
     │
     Leader tools: SlackTools (optional)
     Knowledge:    dash_knowledge (table schemas, queries, business rules, dash views)
     Learnings:    dash_learnings (error patterns, type gotchas, fixes)

2. Data Engineering

Context is data. Memory is data. Knowledge is data. All managed with data engineering principles: well-designed schemas, structured querying, databases for fast read/writes.

Six layers of grounded context:

Layer	Purpose	Source
Table Usage	Schema, columns, relationships	knowledge/tables/*.json
Human Annotations	Metrics, definitions, business rules	knowledge/business/*.json
Query Patterns	SQL that is known to work	knowledge/queries/*.sql
Institutional Knowledge	Docs, wikis, external references	MCP (optional)
Learnings	Error patterns and discovered fixes	Agno Learning Machine
Runtime Context	Live schema changes	introspect_schema tool

The self-learning loop:

User Question
     ↓
Retrieve Knowledge + Learnings
     ↓
Reason about intent
     ↓
Generate grounded SQL
     ↓
Execute and interpret
     ↓
 ┌────┴────┐
 ↓         ↓
Success    Error
 ↓         ↓
 ↓         Diagnose → Fix → Save Learning
 ↓                           (never repeated)
 ↓
Return insight
 ↓
Optionally save as Knowledge

Two complementary systems:

System	Stores	How It Evolves
Knowledge	Validated queries and business context	Curated by you + Dash
Learnings	Error patterns and fixes	Managed by Learning Machine automatically

Dual schema enforcement: A structural boundary between company data and agent-managed data.

Schema	Owner	Access
public	Company (loaded externally)	Read-only — never modified by agents
dash	Engineer agent	Views, summary tables, computed data

The Engineer builds reusable data assets (dash.monthly_mrr, dash.customer_health_score, dash.churn_risk) and records them to knowledge. The Analyst discovers and prefers these views over raw table queries.

3. Security Engineering

Auth uses RBAC with JWT verification in production. Every query is scoped to user_id. Read-only access is a tool configuration, not a prompt instruction. The Analyst agent's SQL tools are scoped to read-only at the system level.

See Security for setup details.

4. Interface Engineering

One agent definition, multiple surfaces. Dash is reachable via REST API (FastAPI), Slack threads, and the AgentOS web UI. Each surface has its own identity system: a Slack user ID maps to sessions via thread timestamps, the API uses JWT-backed auth.

5. Infrastructure Engineering

Dockerfile, Docker Compose, one-command deployment. Scheduled tasks for proactive behavior. The infrastructure layer is boring on purpose. 95% of running an agent is identical to running any other service.

Slack

Dash can receive Slack DMs, @mentions, and thread replies, and can also post to channels proactively.

Quick setup:

1. Run Dash and give it a public URL (ngrok locally, or your Railway domain).
2. Follow docs/SLACK_CONNECT.md to create and install the Slack app from the manifest.
3. Set SLACK_TOKEN and SLACK_SIGNING_SECRET, then restart Dash.
4. In Slack, confirm Event Subscriptions is verified and send a DM or @mention to test it.

Each Slack thread maps to one Dash session. For the manifest, ngrok commands, Railway deployment, permissions, and troubleshooting, see docs/SLACK_CONNECT.md.

Data Model (SaaS Metrics)

Synthetic B2B SaaS dataset (~900 customers, 2 years of data):

Table	Description
customers	Company info, industry, size, acquisition source, status
subscriptions	Plan, MRR, seats, billing cycle, lifecycle status
plan_changes	Upgrades, downgrades, cancellations with MRR impact
invoices	Billing records, payment status, billing periods
usage_metrics	Daily API calls, active users, storage, reports
support_tickets	Priority, category, resolution time, satisfaction

Adding Knowledge

Dash works best when it understands how your organization talks about data.

knowledge/
├── tables/      # Table meaning and caveats
├── queries/     # Proven SQL patterns
└── business/    # Metrics and language

Table Metadata

{
  "table_name": "customers",
  "table_description": "B2B SaaS customer accounts with company info and lifecycle status",
  "use_cases": ["Churn analysis", "Cohort segmentation", "Acquisition reporting"],
  "data_quality_notes": [
    "signup_date is DATE (not TIMESTAMP) — no time component",
    "status values: active, churned, trial",
    "company_size is self-reported"
  ]
}

Query Patterns

-- <query monthly_mrr>
-- <description>Monthly MRR from active subscriptions</description>
-- <query>
SELECT
    DATE_TRUNC('month', started_at) AS month,
    SUM(mrr) AS total_mrr
FROM subscriptions
WHERE ended_at IS NULL
GROUP BY 1
ORDER BY 1 DESC
-- </query>

Business Rules

{
  "metrics": [
    {
      "name": "MRR",
      "definition": "Sum of active subscriptions excluding trials"
    }
  ],
  "common_gotchas": [
    {
      "issue": "Active subscription detection",
      "solution": "Filter on ended_at IS NULL, not status column"
    }
  ]
}

Load Knowledge

python scripts/load_knowledge.py            # Upsert changes
python scripts/load_knowledge.py --recreate  # Fresh start

Evaluations

Five eval categories using Agno's eval framework:

Category	Eval Type	What It Tests
accuracy	AccuracyEval (1-10)	Correct data and meaningful insights
routing	ReliabilityEval	Team routes to correct agent/tools
security	AgentAsJudgeEval (binary)	No credential or secret leaks
governance	AgentAsJudgeEval (binary)	Refuses destructive SQL operations
boundaries	AgentAsJudgeEval (binary)	Schema access boundaries respected

python -m evals                      # Run all evals
python -m evals --category accuracy  # Run specific category
python -m evals --verbose            # Show response details

Local Development

./scripts/venv_setup.sh && source .venv/bin/activate
docker compose up -d dash-db
python scripts/generate_data.py
python scripts/load_knowledge.py
python -m dash            # CLI mode
python -m app.main        # AgentOS mode (web UI at os.agno.com)

Environment Variables

Variable	Required	Default	Purpose
OPENAI_API_KEY	Yes	—	OpenAI API key
SLACK_TOKEN	No	""	Slack bot token (interface + tools)
SLACK_SIGNING_SECRET	No	""	Slack signing secret (interface only)
DB_HOST	No	localhost	PostgreSQL host
DB_PORT	No	5432	PostgreSQL port
DB_USER	No	ai	PostgreSQL user
DB_PASS	No	ai	PostgreSQL password
DB_DATABASE	No	ai	PostgreSQL database
PORT	No	8000	API port
RUNTIME_ENV	No	prd	dev enables hot reload
AGENTOS_URL	No	http://127.0.0.1:8000	Scheduler callback URL (production)
JWT_VERIFICATION_KEY	Production	—	RBAC public key from os.agno.com

Security

Production deployments require authentication via Agno AgentOS. Dash enables RBAC authorization when RUNTIME_ENV=prd (the default). Without a valid JWT_VERIFICATION_KEY, production endpoints will reject all requests.

Local development (RUNTIME_ENV=dev, set by Docker Compose) runs without auth so you can iterate freely.

Auth Setup

See Deploy to Railway for the full setup flow, including how to get your JWT_VERIFICATION_KEY from AgentOS. The Agno control plane handles JWT issuance, session management, traces, metrics, and the web UI. See the AgentOS Security docs for details.

Schema-Level Enforcement

Beyond API-level auth, Dash enforces data access at the database level:

• Analyst connects with default_transaction_read_only=on — PostgreSQL rejects any write attempt
• Engineer writes are scoped to the dash schema — a SQLAlchemy event listener blocks any DDL/DML targeting public
• Leader has no direct database access

These are infrastructure guardrails, not prompt instructions. They hold regardless of what the model generates.

Learn More

• OpenAI's In-House Data Agent — the inspiration
• Self-Improving SQL Agent — deep dive on an earlier architecture
• Agno Docs

Built on Agno · the runtime for agentic software