Status
in progress
Client
Internal product
Duration
Ongoing
Overview
Let's kill the API keys. Apiosk is an API monetization platform that replaces API keys, subscriptions, and billing dashboards with simple per-request payments. Pay with USDC, get your response. No signup, no keys, no invoices — just APIs that work.
**Let's kill the API keys.** API keys are a relic. They're used for billing, not security. They create friction, require account management, and force developers to juggle credentials across dozens of services. Apiosk eliminates them entirely. The premise is radical but simple: **payment IS authentication**. If you can pay for a request, you can make the request. No signup forms. No API key dashboards. No rate limit negotiations. No invoices at the end of the month. Just call the API, pay per request in USDC, and get your data. The platform consists of two core components: **Apiosk Gateway** — A stateless, high-performance HTTP reverse proxy written in Rust. It enforces payments using the x402 protocol. When you call a paid endpoint without payment, you get an HTTP 402 response with payment instructions. Sign a transaction with your wallet, include the proof in your request header, and the gateway verifies it, settles the payment on-chain, and forwards your request. No API key required — your wallet IS your identity. **Apiosk Dashboard** — Where API providers register their APIs and set prices. Define your endpoints, set per-request pricing in USDC, drop in your wallet address, and start earning. Track requests, revenue, and settlements in real-time. See every payment hit your wallet with blockchain transaction receipts. This architecture is **non-custodial** — Apiosk never holds funds. Payments flow directly from consumer wallets to provider wallets. The gateway just enforces the rules. For browsers, there's an interactive paywall with MetaMask integration. For AI agents and programmatic clients, structured JSON payment requirements that can be processed automatically. Both humans and machines can use APIs without ever creating an account or managing keys. **The API key is dead. Long live the open API economy.**
Gallery
Technologies Used
Key Features
Challenges
- The traditional API economy is built on API keys as identity. Keys are used for authentication, rate limiting, billing, and analytics — all bundled into one credential. The challenge was unbundling this: how do you provide the same capabilities (billing, access control, usage tracking) without requiring developers to sign up, generate keys, and manage credentials? And how do you do it without adding latency or complexity to every API request?
Solutions
- Apiosk replaces the API key with a cryptographic payment proof. Your wallet address becomes your identity. The x402 protocol enables per-request payments that are verified in milliseconds using EIP-712 signatures. The Rust gateway uses aggressive caching (Moka) to serve configs in microseconds, and delegates settlement to an external facilitator so it stays stateless. Usage tracking happens automatically — every paid request is logged with the payer's wallet address. Rate limiting becomes irrelevant when every request costs money. The result: all the functionality of API keys, with none of the friction.