Obelisk

What is Obelisk?

Obelisk is an open-source workflow engine built with Rust, WebAssembly, and the WASM Component Model. It enables developers to build and execute reliable, long-running workflows that automatically resume after failures without requiring complex infrastructure. The engine runs as a single process and supports both embedded SQLite and Postgres databases, making it suitable for teams looking for straightforward deployment options. Workflows are written in real code rather than YAML, with support for structured concurrency to simplify error handling and cleanup. Obelisk's deterministic execution model stores every execution parameter, step, and result in an execution log, ensuring workflows are crash-resilient and fully replayable. Side effects such as HTTP requests, file I/O, and child processes are tracked and retried automatically on timeout or failure. The WASM Component Model foundation provides interoperability, deterministic execution, isolation, and safety guarantees for workflow operations. This approach allows developers to write workflows in their preferred programming languages while maintaining portability and reliability. Currently in pre-release, Obelisk is targeted at teams managing durable workflows in DevOps, CI/CD, and automation scenarios who want a lightweight alternative to heavier workflow orchestration platforms. The project welcomes feedback on its architecture and potential use cases.