Live

The Lightning Wallet
for AI Agents

Your agents need to pay for APIs, data, and compute. We handle the Lightning infrastructure so they can focus on the task. Operators fund agents. Agents pay L402 APIs. Simple.

<1s

Settlement

L402

Protocol

1-2%

Fee

Global

Coverage

Understanding the Model

How It Works

A simple two-tier architecture designed for AI autonomy with human oversight

👤

Operators

The human account holders. Operators are developers, companies, or individuals who manage AI agents. They handle the business side: depositing funds, setting budgets, and monitoring usage.

Register once and get an operator API key
Deposit sats via Lightning invoice
Create and manage multiple agents
Set spending limits and budgets per agent
Withdraw unused funds anytime

🤖

Agents

The AI systems that spend. Agents are the autonomous programs that actually make payments. Each agent has its own balance and API key, operating independently within the budget its operator sets.

Each agent gets a unique API key
Funded by their operator (not directly)
Make L402 API calls autonomously
Check their own balance programmatically
Cannot exceed their budget limit

⚡

The Flow

Funds flow one direction. This architecture prevents runaway spending and gives operators full control. Agents can spend but never withdraw—only operators can move funds out.

Operators deposit via Lightning
Operators fund agents from their balance
Agents pay L402 APIs automatically
Operators can top-up or recall funds
Only operators can withdraw to Lightning

The fund flow ensures human oversight over AI spending

⚡

Lightning Network

Deposit / Withdraw

→

👤
Operator
Human account

→

🤖

Agent(s)

AI wallets

→

🌐

L402 APIs

Pay-per-call

Agents can only spend. Only operators can deposit and withdraw.

Common Questions

Who Is This For?

Honest answers about AI agents, L402, and where we are today

🤔

What is an AI Agent?

If you use ChatGPT or Claude, you're already using AI—just not "agents" in the autonomous sense. Agents are AI systems that can take actions: browse the web, write and run code, call APIs, make purchases.

AutoGPT, CrewAI, LangChain agents
Claude with computer use / tool use
Custom autonomous workflows
AI assistants that need to fetch paid data

Who needs this? Developers building AI tools that need to pay for external services autonomously.

🌐

What L402 APIs Exist?

Honestly? It's early. L402 adoption is still nascent, but growing. We're building payment rails now so they're ready when the ecosystem matures.

Fewsats - AI-focused L402 APIs
Lightning data providers and oracles
Podcast indexes (Podcasting 2.0)
Some LLM inference providers

Chicken and egg: Agents need APIs to pay, APIs need agents with money. We're building one side of that equation.

🔐

How Does Security Work?

Think of it like a corporate card. The operator (human) is the account holder who deposits funds and sets budgets. The agent (AI) gets a card that can only spend up to its limit.

Humans deposit and control the funds
AI can only spend within its budget
AI cannot withdraw or drain accounts
Operators see all transactions

The key insight: Agents can spend, but only operators can move money in or out.

Getting Started

Quick Start Guide

Get your AI agent making payments in 5 minutes

Step 1: Create an Operator Account

One API call to register. No login required - AI agents can self-register:

curl -X POST https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"action": "register", "name": "My Agent"}'

# Returns: {"success":true,"api_key":"lf_abc123...","balance_sats":0}

Or use the web interface:

Step 2: Fund Your Operator Account

Create a Lightning invoice to deposit sats:

curl -X POST https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_OPERATOR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "action": "create_deposit",
    "amount_sats": 10000
  }'

# Pay the returned Lightning invoice with any wallet

Step 3: Create an Agent

Create an agent and get its API key:

curl -X POST https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_OPERATOR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "action": "create_agent",
    "name": "Research Agent",
    "description": "Handles data API queries",
    "budget_limit_sats": 5000
  }'

# Save the agent API key!

Step 4: Fund the Agent

Transfer sats from your operator balance to the agent:

curl -X POST https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_OPERATOR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "action": "fund_agent",
    "agent_id": 1,
    "amount_sats": 2000
  }'

Step 5: Make L402 API Calls

Now your agent can pay for L402-protected APIs automatically:

curl -X POST https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_AGENT_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "action": "l402_pay",
    "url": "https://api.example.com/data",
    "method": "GET",
    "max_payment_sats": 100
  }'

# If the API returns HTTP 402, we pay automatically

Check Agent Balance

Agents can check their own balance:

curl -X POST https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_AGENT_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"action": "balance"}'

# {"success":true,"balance_sats":1950,"budget_limit_sats":5000}

How It Works

Payment Rails for AI

We abstract away Lightning complexity

1. Operators Register

Create an account with Lightning wallet login. One human operator can manage multiple agents.

2. Deposit via Lightning

Fund your operator account via Lightning. Allocate balance across your agents as needed.

3. Get Agent API Keys

Generate API keys for each agent. Keys are scoped to specific rate limits and budgets.

4. Agents Pay L402 APIs

When your agent hits a 402 response, we automatically pay the invoice and debit the agent's balance.

5. Track Usage

View spend per agent, per API. Transaction history and rate limit status available via API.

6. Earn Rebates

High-volume operators earn transaction rebates. Real usage is rewarded, not account creation.

L402 Protocol

The Payment Standard for AI

HTTP 402 + Lightning + Macaroons

Agent Requests API

Agent makes a request to an L402-protected endpoint.

402 Payment Required

Server responds with a Lightning invoice and macaroon.

We Pay the Invoice

Lightning Faucet pays the invoice from the agent's balance.

Agent Gets Response

We return the API response with the authenticated result.

Instant Settlement

Lightning payments settle in under 1 second. No delays.

No Channel Management

We handle all Lightning complexity. Agents just make HTTP requests.

Security

Operator-Funded Model

Built to prevent abuse at scale

Human Verification

Operators verify via Lightning wallet. No anonymous agent accounts. Humans are accountable for their agents.

Deposit Required

Agents are funded by operators, not by us. No free money for bots.

Rate Limits

Per-agent and per-operator rate limits prevent abuse. Configurable by tier.

Start Building Now

Everything you need to integrate AI Agent payments.

API Base URL: https://lightningfaucet.com/api/agents

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The Lightning Wallet for AI Agents

How It Works

Operators

Agents

The Flow

Who Is This For?

What is an AI Agent?

What L402 APIs Exist?

How Does Security Work?

Quick Start Guide

Step 1: Create an Operator Account

Step 2: Fund Your Operator Account

Step 3: Create an Agent

Step 4: Fund the Agent

Step 5: Make L402 API Calls

Check Agent Balance

Payment Rails for AI

1. Operators Register

2. Deposit via Lightning

3. Get Agent API Keys

4. Agents Pay L402 APIs

5. Track Usage

6. Earn Rebates

The Payment Standard for AI

Agent Requests API

402 Payment Required

We Pay the Invoice

Agent Gets Response

Instant Settlement

No Channel Management

Operator-Funded Model

Human Verification

Deposit Required

Rate Limits

Start Building Now

The Lightning Wallet
for AI Agents