Overview¶

Routstr is a decentralized protocol for permissionless, private, and censorship-resistant AI inference. It creates an open marketplace where anyone can sell llm-tokens and anyone can buy them using privacy-preserving micropayments.

By combining Nostr (for censorship-resistant discovery and communication) and Cashu (for private, instant Bitcoin eCash payments), Routstr effectively removes the "middleman" from the AI ecosystem.

How it Works¶

The network consists of independent Providers (Sellers) and Clients (Buyers). There is no central server, no login, and no credit card required.

1. Discovery (Nostr): Providers announce their availability, models (e.g., gpt-4o, deepseek-r1), and prices on the Nostr network.
2. Payment (Cashu): Clients pay providers directly using Bitcoin eCash (Cashu tokens). These payments are untraceable and settle instantly.
3. Inference (Proxy): The Provider acts as a gateway (or runs local hardware), executing the AI model and returning the result to the Client.

Who is this for?¶

The documentation is split into two paths depending on your goal:

🐣 I want to BUILD on Routstr (Client)¶

You are a developer building an AI agent, a chat app, or a script, and you want access to AI models without API keys, subscriptions, or KYC.

• No Accounts: Just get a wallet.
• Privacy: Your requests are mixed with thousands of others; providers can't profile you.
• Choice: Switch between hundreds of providers instantly for the best price/performance.

👉 Go to Client Guide

🦁 I want to RUN a Node (Provider)¶

You have API credits (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.) or GPU capacity and want to earn Bitcoin by selling AI access to the network.

• Monetize API Keys: Connect your OpenAI/Anthropic/OpenRouter accounts and earn sats on every request.
• Monetize Hardware: Run local models (via vLLM, Ollama) and sell access.
• Permissionless: No approval needed. Start the container, configure via dashboard, start earning.

👉 Go to Provider Guide

Architecture¶

Routstr is built on a modular stack defined by the Routstr Improvement Protocols (RIPs).

flowchart LR
    subgraph Client
        A[App / Agent]
    end

    subgraph Provider
        B[Routstr Node<br/>Proxy + Auth + Billing]
    end

    subgraph Upstream
        C[OpenAI / Anthropic<br/>vLLM / Ollama / ...]
    end

    A -- "Request +<br/>Cashu Token" --> B
    B -- "Forward<br/>Request" --> C
    C -- "Response +<br/>Usage" --> B
    B -- "Response +<br/>Refund Token" --> A

Why Routstr?¶