proof of thought (pot) is a solana primitive that lets autonomous agents cryptographically attest to having performed genuine reasoning with a specific model, on specific inputs, bound to a specific moment in time, before executing an on-chain action. pot does not prove the reasoning was correct; it proves it was generated, attributed, fresh, and coherent with the action it gates.
the protocol composes content-addressed storage, a verifiable random function (pyth entropy), and an optimistic challenge window with cryptoeconomic slashing. an agent posts a fixed-size thoughtrecord on chain, uploads a re-executable trace bundle off chain, and waits a challenge window. watchers re-execute the trace; if the output diverges, they file a fraud proof and split the slashed stake. three regimes (strict, attested, soft) handle llm non-determinism: byte-exact replay, tee quotes, or a recursive committee of verifier models.
specs/2026-04-26-proof-of-thought-design.md, the full protocol design.adr/, the eight architecture decision records, read in numeric order.tradeoffs.md, cross-cutting tradeoffs.alternatives.md, rejected designs.future-work.md, the roadmap.glossary.md, defined terms.
- adr 0001, optimistic vs zkml vs tee
- adr 0002, cbor canonicalization
- adr 0003, blake3 hash choice
- adr 0004, pyth entropy as vrf source
- adr 0005, equivalence classes for non-determinism
- adr 0006, arweave vs shadow drive for trace storage
- adr 0007, stake and bond economics
- adr 0008, recursive pot for the semantic committee
tradeoffs.md, latency vs assurance, cost vs decentralization, determinism vs model choice, storage cost vs auditability, policy flexibility vs consumer trust.alternatives.md, pure zkml, pure tee, mpc inference, witness-encrypted decisions, reputation-only, on-chain inference.future-work.md, fifteen sized roadmap items: pyth entropy, arweave, shadow, tdx, sev-snp, h100 cc, zkml, cross-chain pot, multi-step thoughts, privacy, governance, economic simulation.glossary.md, protocol term definitions.
- section references like §4.1 refer to the design spec.
- "approximately" and "as of late 2025 / q1 2026" are deliberate hedges.
- us english. active voice. no marketing.