Abstract: In this paper we describe AVATAR, a system that provides an autonomous visual authoring tool for tangible augmented reality (TAR) applications. AVATAR is aiming to enable ordinary users without programming skills to develop their own TAR applications. The system utilizes autonomous techniques to simplify the authoring process during the design phase, while autonomous objects and agents are manipulated through a tangible user interface during the run-time phase. Several experimental TAR applications are presented to demonstrate the usability of our system.