How It Works

The Simple Version

IndieGent creates wallets for your AI agents. Each agent gets its own wallet with real dollars (USDC). You fund them, give them an API key, and they can call any paid API — in the marketplace or anywhere on the web. Track everything from a dashboard with full analytics.

Think of it like giving each of your AI agents their own prepaid corporate card.

The Flow

1. You sign up

Connect your existing wallet (MetaMask, Coinbase Wallet, etc.) or sign up with email and password. Both work the same way.

2. You create an agent

Click “Create Agent” and give it a name like “Research Bot”. Behind the scenes:

• We generate a brand new wallet for the agent
• Keys are encrypted with AES-256-GCM and stored securely
• You get an API key to give your agent — that's all it needs

3. You fund it

Fund the wallet with your credit card (via Coinbase — no crypto knowledge needed) or send USDC directly. When you fund for the first time:

• We automatically cover the tiny transaction fees (~$0.10) so you don't have to
• This covers hundreds of transactions — fees on Base are fractions of a penny

4. Your agent spends

Give your agent its API key and agent name:

eval $(indiegent agents env "Research Bot")
node my-agent.js

That's it — one API key and an agent name. Your agent can call any service in the IndieGent marketplace, or use agent.fetch() to call any paid API on the web. IndieGent detects the payment protocol (MPP, x402, or native) and handles billing automatically.

5. You monitor

The analytics dashboard shows real-time balances, transaction history, and spending across all your agents — broken down by agent, service, department, and time period. Set auto-topup rules so your agents never run dry. Export to CSV anytime.

Key Concepts

Agent Wallets Are Real Wallets

Each agent wallet is a real wallet with real funds. It's not a virtual balance or an abstraction — it holds actual USDC that your agent can spend. You can see it, track it, and control it at all times.

You're Never Locked In

Your primary interface is API keys — generate, rotate, and revoke them from the dashboard or CLI. If you ever need the underlying wallet keys, you can export those too. Move funds independently, use wallets with other tools — you're always in control.

USDC — Dollars That Stay Dollars

Everything is in USDC, a stablecoin pegged to $1. No price volatility, no confusing conversions. Your agent has $50, it has $50. Always.

Transaction Fees Are Handled

Every payment has a tiny network fee (fractions of a penny on Base). We sponsor these automatically so you never have to think about them. Learn more about fee sponsorship.

Non-Custodial

We hold encrypted keys but we're not a custodian. We never move funds without your explicit instruction. You can export wallet keys and use them independently if needed, but most users never have to — API keys handle everything. Same model as Privy, Magic, and other modern wallet services.

How It All Fits Together

You (Dashboard / CLI / API)
       │
       ▼
  IndieGent Platform
       │
       ├── Authentication (wallet sign-in, email, API keys)
       ├── Agent wallet creation & management
       ├── Teams & departments (Owner, Manager, Operator roles)
       ├── Policy controls per agent (spending caps, allowed services)
       ├── Analytics dashboard (by agent, service, department, time)
       ├── Payment sessions (batched API calls)
       ├── Auto-topup (keeps wallets funded)
       └── Transaction fee sponsorship
       │
       ▼
   Services (Marketplace + External)
       │
       ├── Marketplace: Flights, Email, Search, Image, Music, and more
       ├── External APIs: Any MPP or x402 service via agent.fetch()
       └── Payment protocol auto-detection (MPP, x402, native)

Authentication Options

All four methods give you the same access to everything.

Spending Controls & Policies

• Spending caps — Set a maximum balance per agent wallet
• Policy controls — Define per-agent policies: allowed services, daily limits, and more
• Auto-topup — “When below $10, refill to $50” — runs automatically
• Manual drain — Pull all funds back to your wallet anytime
• Deactivate — Turn off an agent and auto-drain funds instantly

What's Next?

• Quickstart — Create your first wallet in 2 minutes
• SDK Reference — Integrate in three lines of code
• Security — How we protect your keys and funds