Ethereum’s zkAPI brings privacy-preserving API payments to mainnet

Details

Ethereum’s zkAPI is now live on mainnet, turning an earlier zero-knowledge API payment proposal into a working implementation for private, prepaid access.

The Ethereum Foundation announced on Thursday that zkAPI, a system built with the Open Anonymity Project to let users pay for AI and other API services without revealing their billing identities, has gone live on Ethereum mainnet.

Users deposit funds into an Ethereum vault, then use zero-knowledge proofs to prove they have enough credit to pay for API requests without revealing which deposits are theirs, according to a post from Vittorio Rivabella, AI coordinator at the Ethereum Foundation’s dAI team.

One of the immediate use cases of the system is paying for the use of AI without linking the payment to a user. zkAPI issues short-lived API keys with predefined spending limits. Prompts are sent directly to the AI provider, while usage is settled separately through the payment layer. The project has also released a local client and software development kit, along with a browser-based AI chat implementation.

The launch follows a February proposal by Ethereum Foundation researcher Davide Crapis and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin for ZK-based API usage credits. The new release turns that design into a working mainnet implementation.

The concept was presented as a way to give users private, prepaid access to AI and other metered APIs. However, zkAPI does not hide prompt contents or network metadata from providers, meaning users can still potentially be linked across sessions through IP addresses, timing or information contained in their requests.

Related: MetaMask exits Ethereum validators amid undisclosed security incident

Subscribe to daily byte-sized crypto news from Cointelegraph

Ethereum schedules Glamsterdam upgrade on Sepolia for Oct. 6

BitMine could hit its 5% Ether supply target within weeks — then what?

Vitalik Buterin says Hegotá could be Ethereum’s last ‘normal’ fork

Ethereum schedules Glamsterdam upgrade on Sepolia for Oct. 6

BitMine could hit its 5% Ether supply target within weeks — then what?

Vitalik Buterin says Hegotá could be Ethereum’s last ‘normal’ fork

SEC moves to clear custody hurdle for advisers offering crypto

Bitcoin fights for local uptrend as US bond yields drop from new 24-year highs

Stablecoins can drain from banks and nations at lightning speed

NEAR Intents says it’s identified the hacker, gives 48-hour ultimatum

Trump to host 3rd ‘exclusive’ memecoin event amid corruption claims

Cointelegraph is committed to providing independent, high-quality journalism across the crypto, blockchain, AI, and fintech industries.

All news, reviews, and analyses are produced with full journalistic independence and integrity. For more details on our standards and processes, please read our Editorial Policy .

Related Coins

ETH

Source

Cointelegraph RSS