- Live Application: https://paygate-stellar-swart.vercel.app/ (Live PayGate Application)
- Documentation: https://paygate-stellar-docs.vercel.app (Official PayGate Documentation)
- Demo Video: https://youtu.be/We9RWRjFwhE
- Product Presentation: Pitch Deck
The current API economy is built for humans and credit cards, not AI agents. When an autonomous AI needs to access premium data (like real-time weather, stock prices, or compute APIs), it hits a paywall. To get past it, a human developer has to manually sign up for an API key, enter a credit card, commit to a monthly subscription, and hardcode that key into the agent.
This breaks the autonomy of AI. AI agents cannot hold bank accounts or sign up for SaaS subscriptions. As we move towards an agent-to-agent economy, we need a way for software to autonomously negotiate and pay for data in real-time, on a per-request basis, without human intervention.
PayGate bridges this gap using the x402 protocol and the Stellar blockchain.
When an AI agent requests data from a PayGate-protected API without a payment, the server intercepts the request and responds with a standard HTTP 402 Payment Required status code. But instead of just an error message, the response includes an x402 header containing a crypto invoice (specifying the price in USDC and the destination wallet).
The agent automatically intercepts this 402, constructs a micro-transaction on the Stellar network using its own built-in crypto wallet, and retries the request with the transaction signature attached. PayGate verifies the payment instantly and serves the data.
Result: True machine-to-machine commerce. Pay-per-call, settled instantly in USDC, with zero subscriptions and zero human onboarding.
Imagine "WeatherData Inc," a company that provides highly accurate, real-time meteorological data.
- Currently: They sell $500/month enterprise API subscriptions. Startups and independent AI developers can't afford this, so WeatherData misses out on the long tail of the market.
- With PayGate: WeatherData registers their endpoint on PayGate and sets a price of $0.002 USDC per call. An autonomous farming drone AI needs wind data to optimize its flight path. It pings the API, pays $0.002 instantly from its onboard wallet, gets the data, and flies. WeatherData monetizes a micro-interaction they would have otherwise lost, and the AI remains fully autonomous.
We are constantly improving PayGate based on developer feedback.
| Full Name | Wallet Address (Testnet) | x402 Exp | Satisfaction | Tx Speed | UI Design | Security | Primary Reason | Bugs/Issues | Suggestions | Recommend | Commits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soumen Mandal | GAEOFN7X2JSDH5BSM46P7EDDFRKFEJMW7PTSDOGBDGHUPOM7MEXSIZQE |
4/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low fees, Fast processing | None | All good | 10/10 | NiL |
| Aditya Jha | GCX3LFQ2BXHVEVL5VD7DZ4Y3R6WIUNUTJNZRMGRMWLM33XD2J7YFFLQA |
3/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Good | Low fees, Ease of use, Fast processing | NA | Need more for dev dashboard | 8/10 | NiL |
| Debansh Tiwari | GDFKLTB5WKKDDJ2NRU2V5OG476HYEGWT4UFV7BID7BNGWZGRZYL3LL6Z |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Fair | Excellent | Low fees, Ease of use, Fast processing, Integrations | Missing docs option in API creation | Enhance dev dashboard UI | 8/10 | 165b188 |
| Saurav Tiwari | GALK4MID2BKRGDIFYAGRBJ3P2ZDSQJQASWMFAEMP25DPO2O5ISMXVTTB |
2/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Fair | Excellent | Low fees, Ease of use, Fast processing | None | Provide more dev resources for monetization | 7/10 | NiL |
| Suman Pradhan | GA4DBFJ7O7VXZDFFP3DARCCQHZLVTDD4YBLS4KKLYHT2BDA3S5MEMA67 |
4/5 | 3/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low fees, Ease of use, Fast processing, Integrations | Enhance testing screen | Enhance the testing page | 9/10 | 087055f |
| Souradip Pal | GCJWSEXMUW3B2SHKMAGKQ5ZD56V2YHHTRGYETS3WV2IN3ISXKVRWLSP7 |
4/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Fair | Good | Low fees, Ease of use, Fast processing, Integrations | Couldn't find a withdrawal option | Keep it simple | 9/10 | 80d2456 |
| Valid Cerome | GAMEGSEK4STZPXITXH63Y5QBO5Y2LL2O2D6VYQBXB4MJMKIXC63B5KJ4 |
1/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Good | Ease of use | None | Explore more | 7/10 | NiL |
| Kartik Biswas | GDKHLI3JCIRIKHOY5UJIVNEYGQOZXQSPE4SRWMKG7B77VAQE7SSYQMU6 |
1/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low fees, Ease of use | No | Loved the marketplace testing feature | 10/10 | NiL |
| Subhajit Das | GCQ6JTOTY4IWA5URYBAMX3RGRCRZ5CO3GKIF6DQI5NIDKY47XEUY7O4G |
3/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low fees, Ease of use, Fast processing | No delete option for API | Great idea with potential | 9/10 | f094c30 |
| Priyam Dey | GDXRHYMYYF3ISS4JPQVZHHBHT7EVLAXFYCARK4HEXEQJ63HLMTK2OZ5I |
3/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Fair | Low fees, Ease of use | No | Highlight marketplace on landing page | 7/10 | bf2b357 |
| Joya Marty | GD37TTSTX22Y24CAKWO45IKKHEMDYVEK7MEE7QC6C4O6VAIDXCEK4VL4 |
4/5 | 4/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No bugs | Its very good product for developers | 9/10 | NiL |
| Abhi Jain | GC22Z2IN3ROLZFW3JEU64C4IZZ74Z5RZWOG4OO64FJPKNMS77GZGVBMA |
2/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | NO bugs encountered | enhance the lannding page a make a documentation | 9/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Arif Ali | GBQWJUMYCSE63MT2XBAYK4BMMAJJFNTOR46QGPST4BLSPWBNGLU6FFHD |
1/5 | 3/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | NO ISSUES | PayGate is a very good platform | 9/10 | NiL |
| Rishi Gharia | GC5J6BN4BXXNE6DR6OHJSRH4WH4EZEFIO4AM2KRNFZEA5DCI3QFKODKA |
4/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Ease of use, Fast processing time | No bugs encountered | Good Platform | 9/10 | NiL |
| Akansha Kumari | GC23LEPSSBJL4VJK6LK5RIRRX2ZKJ3OTVXHJT6HSWPMZ4JJDXE3ZRUPE |
4/5 | 3/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use | No but I like the Marketplace area | No its good platform | 10/10 | NiL |
| Bheem Dastidar | GDFEYX5Q7UT4ZUREVHPULKYD6C3EKWQDTJY76OXYWTRTUE7PKUSKWJZG |
1/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No bugs/issues encountered | more things to be added in the settings tab | 9/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Sahil Rao | GBJA4Z6IXQLVZWMM3U7C7PFRFHWO7CZ3S62SPC6TX2NLV4XS2MQHBC4F |
4/5 | 4/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | NA | in profile more detiasl could have been taken | 10/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Anubhav Sen | GDYF2MPWHTXE63DVLGG3H4JKTCBQ24OZAMGMLBMYY3IEIJLOCVD5CZDU |
4/5 | 4/5 | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No bugs while I gave my API key | No | 9/10 | NiL |
| Gourab Basak | GCVODPBH7PNE6AENNEYO6PFDH3VSF5JKYH6ULN3ZICROIWYAGJWLXSJY |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Fair | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time | No error encountered | transection hash dispaly please make it hyperlink | 8/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Dev Verma | GDQJ7VPDOB247LD6D4QD6UQIYBKNVFU7UKNJGE55K77S23XMG77NEY33 |
2/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | Nothing like that | PayGate is very good developer friendly platform. | 8/10 | NiL |
| Saikat Ghoyal | GCVRAIG5F2ECKA2I6AGKYXFLFTUTWBROCXLQET7WX3SZEKBFX6M2SJAH |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Good | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time | Nothing like hat got | Its good overall | 9/10 | NiL |
| Sandeep Kumar | GCKF7AIJJ5TCJ2MW5TMDSALFHSGKIJTZ5ML3PJ3P6N5726E2GQXVXBNI |
4/5 | 4/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | NA | Perfect for devs | 9/10 | NiL |
| Roni Mondal | GAUVTXZPGQSA3AILP4WLQTDY2WTG5SE7PY4VN3CFNT6HMT2Z7VMYAASS |
3/5 | 5/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | Nothing like that got | I like the product | 9/10 | NiL |
| Sarathi Kar | GA7A4OHK55D3YRLLQJLIM7Y6R3TXGT45DPSHVSWRXLSUIDJSBTBTPWAW |
2/5 | 4/5 | Excellent | Good | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No | Na | 9/10 | NiL |
| Aarav Ganguly | GAVNKQJQH67HIDKS3VQVWQJKWO5CYO3INGXS7Y3NJBBM42L4QFU7NZ4X |
1/5 | 4/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No bugs | dedicated profile tab to know abou the developer | 9/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Ranadeep Seikh | GB6TDEABOPVRD5P4BESJ3SD4J2XMJ3NQF6RIND77ZUSAJLRJSULLSFQX |
2/5 | 5/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | API playground got error | Everything is fine except that | 9/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Hanshraj Kumar | GAAQ5DEN4X6RGDZRW7MJDJOZHCZOK7OJJLH7GKDZDQP6FQZJ7JJTF674 |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No erros | great product for me. | 10/10 | NiL |
| Kaustav Bhowmik | GCZN6JR6IVSFUSMZR2QQZACDBTM2GCRMEEZGGU3F2GNNWVTPOCDVE7TU |
3/5 | 3/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No bugs or error | no | 9/10 | NiL |
| Suhan Seikh | GCYTO76ZKKWHLHX46PUUGFOW6O5G2URMDX6WSOKB5UVJIWJIOHODCOSK |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Fair | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | no error, bugs, issues encountered | NA | 8/10 | NiL |
| Debapriya Iyer | GBIAUXOC7DQVN4DK2PU3KUDDRP4WP3IKXYPETELZLQGKJBTNY4QYKQDJ |
3/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No | I reealy liked the transection and test playground place | 8/10 | NiL |
| Raiyan Ali | GALN6TPIOE5NAFYA3MEE4L2KPXM7CKHJRSEWOWMBGQ6KYCU7U5UMCRKS |
3/5 | 2/5 | Excellent | Good | Fair | Ease of use, Fast processing time | 0 USDC still gave status 200 this a bug. | routing decisions are not absoulute please check it once | 8/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Tahir Seikh | GAMQZW6Q5OYO7KHIMTS5DQQ7CFN5PIAL4CJWNLJ5M4P4X72BQSDEQDPG |
2/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | can't take the image APIs | give a warnig message atleast. | 8/10 | c0efdb7 |
| Anuska Sen | GDWXLJIZDOY5THKEGWKZXD245SU4BVJSVJ63LI4PAUY4KMR4JPRCZFBP |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time | nothing like that | Its good and simple for dev to use. | 9/10 | NiL |
| Sneha Das | GAJ7DRJCSIJDLH4JJYXQ4MWG5GHSK56AYCQUGKKW4OFYXGDAH3G2FXRN |
3/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Good | Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No | Good use of x402 protocol | 9/10 | NiL |
| Sk. Asraf Ali | GBY5SUTENI56R6I2O2C6Y3IT6YD2STF76DDUXPILZU4NIEEP7RQCAWSI |
3/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No bugs till now | The UI is good and overll implementation is nice | 9/10 | NiL |
| Ratul Pramanik | GAQKUIGCICSMZ6UCUHAH7PVI7VIFKK464M5RIARN77VXO4KAV2RTNYSU |
3/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No error got | No its all good | 8/10 | NiL |
| Haris Khan | GDSHPINMELPVJEFCBVO5ZQYYB2CC7YQPGM2L3UPOIJLROO5MAMIIYO7X |
1/5 | 4/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Ease of use, Fast processing time | No bugs found | Paygate is good for developer | 8/10 | NiL |
| Taniya Roy | GDAUYKURO274AJDEBF5JZDUP5RDBQM6PGUSRVZ7LVSPU25HMBRUQRPY6 |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No error | I like the playgorund and its great to to direct give a testing place | 8/10 | NiL |
| Akhil Tiwari | GAJUWETQPUT4RH6BHWDQOMC6EPTMMW4Q3IW46KSMCZLN7Y25NCLQBOV3 |
2/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | No error found all good | Its good for developers | 8/10 | NiL |
| Sagnik Naidu | GCKCB3VVRFWTDIIQ6E2VFRIKCGE4CZEWHWZJCLWCPG37VGAPMKWNW4TW |
2/5 | 5/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | NA | If you could attach your feedback from link in the landing page then it will be a good for taking your feedbacks | 9/10 | 2bce26e |
| Mayunk Pandey | GCCOAGPSAKD5E6ES2DIU64NXWG6O4M4HP5JXFMYLV3NR5SXOX2TCWEDQ |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | Once logged in, the sidebar only displays Dashboard, My APIs, and Settings. A user has to manually type the URL or log out to visit the Marketplace, Documentation, or Developer Guide. | so pelasea fix the above other than that no issue or bugs encountered | 8/10 | bf2b357 |
| Soumyanil Acharya | GAPVN4B4EYFBFR5GKKKAITUXPUWWZ7VQCWK7273A2MT46K7ZBA4ILITI |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | NA | Its is very good platform | 8/10 | NiL |
| Udansgshu Das | GALKUNV3QKBIP37JCQXXDOCZBRKBCA52JRCOH2442GHSRHOWG3RPPWTL |
3/5 | 4/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options, Other | I didm't anything like that | Overall product is great and also make sure that the documentation part is well handled taht is very important for a developer friendly app | 9/10 | 3d8da13 |
| Swastik Sen | GAXPJXWRLLZWRGJWYDWM7ZQ4RBV77CKRN6BZYPBK7IWLBB7MLUS6P2T3 |
2/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | Every thing is fine | No suggestion | 9/10 | NiL |
| Tahir Rehman | GCSHXA2QD4RS35O2D7OCIRUT6ONNHDWN42YAFTQUT6NWGKGCUGBASQNQ |
4/5 | 5/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No errors | Satisfied with the x402 implementation in your product. | 9/10 | NiL |
| Debdut Mondal | GBA6F4HQIJ6UY7WXUH2KRMHYIVX57MRFWZP7QS7EB267MYCKJARMH6UP |
3/5 | 5/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time | While staking my API for marketplace launch encountered an error please check that once | Just make it correct other than that everything is good | 9/10 | 4e1b2e4 |
| Soumitra Nath | GAREG55YYVOTXCA6MK3RKMFNJ2VPNIET3VIEFFJTCQAVFUHFI6CDVGPN |
2/5 | 5/5 | Good | Good | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | No | Excellent Product | 9/10 | NiL |
| Sohon Roy | GDX4565AJ4DBGP3HGDIV7F6QJ3IPOVDLG3BOXTHS5ITWKJMEWND3Y7HK |
3/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | Nothing | I like the multi wallet connect feature I can use any supppoted wallet its good | 9/10 | NiL |
| Shrey Dutta | GDCP2LXKUNBHFV4FPG4SDRIIQ5WVJ2OWH7WJWBHOK5TCNXKSDI74O32G |
4/5 | 4/5 | Good | Excellent | Good | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options | Na | the landing page's current minimal footer, which currently consists of just a single copyright line, to a more comprehensive, multi-column layout. This updated footer is designed to improve navigation by organizing quick links into two distinct categories: a "Platform" section containing resources like the Marketplace, Playground, Documentation, and Developer Guide, and a "Community & Links" section that directs users to the GitHub Repository, a Demo Video, the Stellar Explorer, and a Feedback Form. | 9/10 | 2bce26e |
| Harpinder Singh | GAS6ZE6F6JD7VKPXHAHFIJ4WXEQHH5WEEKBNNMZSN4T3IPWJQWGNDP6R |
3/5 | 5/5 | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Low transaction fees, Ease of use, Fast processing time, Integration options, Other | Its good product and I didn't anything like that. | No its all good platform I like its features | 10/10 | NiL |
| Landing Page | Developer Dashboard |
|---|---|
 The front door to the autonomous API economy. |
 Track your earnings, calls, and active APIs in real-time. |
| Wallet Authentication | Register API |
|---|---|
 Passwordless login via cryptographic Stellar wallet signature. |
 Turn any backend URL into a monetized endpoint in seconds. |
| API Marketplace | API Metrics |
|---|---|
 Public directory for developers and agents to discover your APIs. |
 Detailed analytics and transaction history for a specific API. |
| Playground / Testing | Developer Guide |
|---|---|
 Live in-browser simulation of an AI agent paying for your API. |
 Interactive, step-by-step onboarding for new developers. |
| Settings | My APIs |
|---|---|
 Manage your profile and notification preferences. |
 Manage and configure your registered paywalled endpoints. |
| Vercel Analytics | On-Chain Activity |
|---|---|
 Analytics added via Vercel Analytics to track traffic and usage. |
 Transparent on-chain activity of the user on the Stellar network in this platform. |
PayGate is fully responsive, allowing developers to manage their APIs and view earnings on the go.
| Mobile Landing Page | Mobile Dashboard |
|---|---|
 |
 |
| Category | Technology | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend Framework | Next.js (App Router) | Core application, routing, and SSR |
| Styling & UI | Tailwind CSS + shadcn/ui | Rapid, beautiful, and accessible component design |
| Language | TypeScript | Type safety across the full stack |
| Database | Neon (Serverless Postgres) | Persistent source of truth (Users, APIs, Call logs) |
| ORM | Prisma | Type-safe database access and migrations |
| Cache / Rate Limiting | Upstash (Redis) | High-speed rate limiting and live feed caching |
| Blockchain | Stellar (Soroban) | Fast, low-fee settlement layer for USDC micro-payments |
| Protocol | x402 | HTTP standard for machine-to-machine payments |
PayGate leverages the Stellar Network for its unparalleled suitability for micro-transactions:
- Low Fees: Stellar transaction fees are fractions of a cent, making $0.001 API calls economically viable.
- Speed: ~5-second ledger close times mean API requests are processed almost as fast as traditional web2 payments.
- USDC Native: Stellar natively supports USDC, meaning developers earn real stablecoins, not volatile utility tokens.
- Soroban Smart Contracts: Used for immutable, on-chain receipt verification and audit logs, ensuring trustless settlement between the agent and the API provider.
paygate/
├── apps/web/ # Core Next.js Application
│ ├── src/app/
│ │ ├── api/x/[slug]/ # The x402 payment verification proxy middleware
│ │ ├── (app)/dashboard/ # Developer admin panel
│ │ └── marketplace/ # Public API directory
│ ├── src/components/ # Reusable UI components (shadcn/ui)
│ ├── src/lib/
│ │ ├── db/ # Prisma database helpers
│ │ ├── x402/ # Core protocol logic (facilitator, middleware)
│ │ └── stellar/ # Stellar network integration (signer, soroban)
│ └── prisma/ # Database schema and migrations
├── contracts/ # Soroban Smart Contracts (Rust)
│ ├── receipt-verifier/ # On-chain payment receipt logging
│ └── scripts/ # Contract deployment utilities
└── scripts/ # Local environment bootstrap and testing scripts
sequenceDiagram
actor Dev as Developer
participant App as PayGate Dashboard
participant DB as Postgres DB
Dev->>App: Connects Stellar Wallet (Auth)
App->>App: Verifies Signature
Dev->>App: Submits API details (Target URL, Price USDC)
App->>DB: Stores API Configuration
App-->>Dev: Returns PayGate Proxy URL (e.g., /api/x/weather)
sequenceDiagram
actor Agent as AI Agent (Client)
participant PayGate as PayGate Middleware
participant Facilitator as x402 Facilitator
participant Stellar as Stellar Network
participant TargetAPI as Developer's API
Agent->>PayGate: GET /api/x/weather (No Payment)
PayGate-->>Agent: 402 Payment Required (Price: 0.002 USDC)
Note over Agent,PayGate: Agent signs Stellar Tx internally
Agent->>PayGate: GET /api/x/weather + X-Payment-Signature
PayGate->>Facilitator: Verify Signature
Facilitator->>Stellar: Submit Transaction (Settle USDC)
Stellar-->>Facilitator: Tx Hash (Success)
Facilitator-->>PayGate: Verification OK
PayGate->>TargetAPI: Proxied GET /weather
TargetAPI-->>PayGate: JSON Data
PayGate-->>Agent: 200 OK + JSON Data
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Zero-Config Paywalls | Turn any backend URL into a monetized API in seconds. No SDK required on the backend. |
| Passwordless Auth | Developers log in seamlessly using their Stellar wallet via cryptographic signatures. |
| Instant USDC Settlement | API calls are paid in USDC and settled directly to the developer's wallet on the Stellar network. |
| Agent-Ready Protocol | Fully implements the x402 protocol, allowing compliant AI agents to auto-negotiate payments. |
| Real-time Analytics | Live dashboard tracking earnings, active APIs, and a real-time feed of incoming API calls. |
| Rate Limiting | Built-in Redis-backed rate limiting to protect target APIs from abuse before payment verification. |
| Interactive Playground | Live in-browser demo simulating an AI agent making a payment, perfect for testing. |
PayGate utilizes Soroban smart contracts on the Stellar network to maintain an immutable, decentralized log of payment receipts.
| Contract Name | Network | Contract ID | Verification Link |
|---|---|---|---|
receipt-verifier |
Stellar Testnet | CBUGM2OM6Z3XSRTVN3Y4LI6SH3CXW2GUKNQL2FQKNERABFCNDT7DXRGI |
Verify on Stellar Expert |
paygate-router |
Stellar Testnet | CDHAMAEXMNLHUDBF5EKF3OYYPHIRUOWWSSW6ML4ANDDRESHGTVGMRO3L |
Verify on Stellar Expert |
paygate-reputation |
Stellar Testnet | CDEXJVXD4AAT73DDSEOEOCFZZFSYBKZAJFQ37EYFG3TS57F7E25HHHA6 |
Verify on Stellar Expert |
PayGate ensures robust error handling across the entire payment and proxy lifecycle:
| Scenario | HTTP Status | Response / Action |
|---|---|---|
| No Payment Provided | 402 Payment Required |
Returns x402 headers detailing price, asset, and destination wallet for the agent to construct a transaction. |
| Invalid Signature / Insufficient Funds | 402 Payment Required |
Returns JSON error details (e.g., invalid_exact_stellar_payload_fee_exceeds_maximum). |
| Target API Down/Timeout | 502 Bad Gateway |
If the developer's target API fails after payment, logs the call as failed for audit purposes. |
| Rate Limit Exceeded | 429 Too Many Requests |
Blocks the request via Redis before hitting the x402 facilitator to prevent network spam. |
| API Not Found / Inactive | 404 Not Found |
Returns an error if the requested API slug doesn't exist or was deactivated by the developer. |
To ensure true decentralization and on-chain verifiable behaviors, PayGate utilizes two custom Soroban smart contracts:
- PayGate Router (
contracts/paygate-router): A decentralized router that automatically splits the paid USDC between the API Developer (e.g. 90%) and the Protocol Treasury (10%) seamlessly on-chain using the standard Stellar Asset Contract token client. - PayGate Reputation (
contracts/paygate-reputation): A staking and voting contract. Developers must stake a minimum of 1 USDC to have their API listed on the public marketplace, effectively curbing spam. Users can cast upvotes and downvotes on-chain to rank the APIs.
An included backend indexer (scripts/indexer.ts) listens to Soroban RPC events emitted by these contracts in real-time, syncing the state directly to the dashboard.
PayGate includes an interactive playground and end-to-end (E2E) testing scripts to verify the complete machine-to-machine payment flow.
Running the E2E script simulating an AI agent paying for an API call.
- Run the local dev server:
npm run devinsideapps/web. - Setup Test Wallets: Ensure
AGENT_STELLAR_SECRET_KEYis in your.env.local. Runnpx tsx scripts/setup-wallets.tsto establish USDC trustlines. - Fund Agent Wallet: Use the Circle Testnet Faucet to send USDC to your agent's public key.
- Run E2E Demo:
npx tsx scripts/e2e-demo.ts. Watch the terminal output as it hits the 402, auto-signs the transaction, and successfully fetches the data.
-
Clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/paygate.git cd paygate -
Install dependencies:
npm install
-
Configure Environment: Copy the example environment file and fill in your keys.
cp apps/web/.env.example apps/web/.env.local
Required keys include Database URLs (Neon), Upstash Redis URLs, and your Stellar Treasury Wallet info.
-
Initialize Database:
cd apps/web npx prisma generate npx prisma db push -
Start the Development Server:
npm run dev
Visit
http://localhost:3000to access the application.
Moving to Stellar Mainnet is a seamless transition designed into the architecture:
- Network Switch: Change
STELLAR_NETWORK=testnettopubnetin the environment variables. - Asset Switch: Update the USDC asset configurations to point to the official Circle USDC issuer on Stellar Mainnet.
- Facilitator Migration: Switch from the OpenZeppelin testnet facilitator to the production x402.org facilitator or self-host the facilitator node for ultimate control.
- Contract Deployment: Deploy the
receipt-verifierSoroban contract to Mainnet using thedeploy-mainnet.shscript and update theSOROBAN_CONTRACT_ID.
The API economy is currently valued at billions, but it completely excludes non-human actors. As Large Language Models (LLMs) evolve into autonomous agents capable of executing tasks, the demand for machine-accessible, pay-per-use data will skyrocket.
Opportunities:
- Agentic Search Engines: AI search engines paying micropayments to news sites directly per article scraped, replacing the broken ad-supported SEO model.
- Compute Marketplaces: Agents dynamically renting specialized GPU time or inference APIs on the fly, paying by the millisecond.
- Micro-SaaS: Independent developers monetizing niche datasets without needing to setup Stripe, handle KYC, or manage subscriptions.
PayGate's Future Roadmap:
- SDKs for popular agent frameworks (LangChain, AutoGPT) for native x402 support.
- API request batching to lower on-chain footprint for ultra-high-frequency trading agents.
- Reputation systems based on on-chain receipts to rate API reliability.
Building the financial infrastructure for the autonomous economy. 🚀