The ancestors of the breed may date back to animals living 3,000 years ago, known by a number of names.

[15] It is also possible that the so-called "hot blooded" breeds, the Arabian, Turkoman, Akhal-Teke, and the Barb all developed from a single "oriental horse" predecessor.

[20] And the access to these horse breeds fueled the success in China's future campaign against their nomadic neighbors.

[22] The Trakehner has also been influenced by the Akhal-Teke, most notably by the stallion, Turkmen-Atti, as have the Russian breeds Don, Budyonny, Karabair, and Karabakh.

The breed suffered greatly when the Soviet Union required horses to be slaughtered for meat, even though local Turkmen refused to eat them.

[24] In the early 20th century, crossbreeding between the Thoroughbred and the Akhal-Teke took place, aiming to create a faster long-distance racehorse.

[26] Since 1973, all foals must be blood typed to be accepted in the stud book in order to protect the integrity of the breed.

[28] Turkmenistan has a separate agency, Turkmen Atlary, responsible for the breeding, training and maintenance of Akhal-Teke horses.

The main reason for this are allegations of a heavy infusion of Thoroughbred blood into the breed to create faster horses for racing in Turkmenistan.

His decision to go public with this information was viewed as a threat to the profits of the horse-breeding establishment and he fell out of favor with the Turkmenistan government,[33] and in particular, then-President Saparmurat Niyazov.

[34] By 2012, Kyarizov's health, which had been poor since his arrest and subsequent imprisonment, had deteriorated to the point he needed to go abroad for medical care, but was initially prevented from leaving the country.

[35] By 2015, he was allowed to travel to Moscow for medical care, but family members, including his 14-year-old daughter, were forced to remain behind to "guarantee" his return.

[41]: 433 [42] The coat often has a characteristic metallic sheen, which in duns may produce an unusual golden effect;[43] it is sometimes claimed that this provided camouflage in the desert.

The breed is tough and resilient, having adapted to the harshness of Turkmenistan lands, where horses must live without much food or water.

[48] There are usually 2 annual grading events in Moscow, Russia called the "International Sport Meeting and World Championship “Heavenly Argamak” and "Golden Akhal-Teke Cup Shael" where breeders present their best horses to a group of judges.

At the World Championship, a group of judges evaluates the horses in age and gender categories as well as in various sport disciplines and a halter class.

The Akhal-Teke, due to its natural athleticism, can be a sport horse, good at dressage, show jumping, eventing, racing, and endurance riding.

A noted example was the Akhal-Teke stallion, Absent, who won the Grand Prix de Dressage at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, while being ridden by Sergei Filatov.

[49] However, by today's studbook standards he wouldn't be admitted as Akhal-Teke, owing to the Thoroughbred ancestry of his dam Bakkara.

[50] In 2009, an Akhal-Teke named Almila carried the French poet Laurence Bougault on a trek alone from Isfahan in Iran to Paris by way of Turkey, Greece and Italy.

The genetic diversity of the breed is relatively low with an AVK (Ancestor Loss Coefficient [52]) of 30-50%,[dubious – discuss] which raises concerns for dealing with an increase in carriers of these conditions, and even some risk of inbreeding depression.