Path402 is Now on the MCP Registry — 16 Tools for the Agent Economy

The Protocol is Live. The Tools are Public.

As of today, the Path402 MCP server is available on three public registries:

• Official MCP Registry — io.github.b0ase/path402
• Smithery — bitcoincorp/path402
• npm — npx path402

Any AI agent running Claude, ChatGPT, Windsurf, or any MCP-compatible client can now connect to Path402 and start interacting with tokenised web content.

What Path402 Actually Is

Path402 is not a micropayment system. It is not a tip jar. It is not a paywall.

Path402 turns every URL on the existing web into a tradeable financial instrument. The insight is simple: a URL already functions as a unique address. Adding a $ to a path segment — b0ase.com/$my-blog — signals that the content at that address is tokenised, priced on a bonding curve, and indexed in the Path402 overlay network.

The core thesis: speculation drives adoption, not micropayments. People pay for novel financial instruments, not content per se. Every failed micropayment startup (Flattr, Coil, Blendle) tried to change how humans pay for articles. We are not doing that. We are creating scarce, tradeable tickets backed by staked collateral, with algorithmically determined pricing and holder-as-distributor economics.

Three Layers, One Protocol

The system operates on three token layers mapped to HTTP status codes:

The $402 token is not sold by the issuer. It is 100% mined via Proof of Indexing — a consensus mechanism where computational work is useful (indexing on-chain content) rather than wasteful. Zero pre-mine. Utility function. Not a security.

The Stake-to-Index Flywheel

Content enters the network through a six-step cycle:

1. Mine $402 — ClawMiner nodes perform Proof of Work indexing
2. Stake $402 — Publisher locks tokens against a URL path
3. Inscribe — URL path is recorded on-chain (BSV)
4. Lock-to-Mint — Contract issues tickets for that path, backed by staked $402
5. Index — Nodes detect staked URLs, content becomes discoverable
6. Revenue — Tickets sold, revenue flows to holders and issuers

The more content joins the network, the more $402 is locked in staking contracts. Reduced circulating supply against growing demand produces organic price appreciation — driven entirely by utility, not promises.

16 MCP Tools for AI Agents

The MCP server exposes everything an autonomous agent needs:

Discovery: path402_discover, path402_batch_discover — probe $addresses, get pricing and terms before any purchase decision.

Evaluation: path402_evaluate, path402_economics, path402_price_schedule — should the agent buy? ROI projections, breakeven analysis, supply curves.

Acquisition: path402_acquire, path402_connect_wallet, path402_set_budget — pay for tokens, manage wallet, set spending limits.

Serving: path402_serve, path402_servable — re-distribute content you hold, earn revenue from downstream requests.

Verification: path402_token_stats, path402_holders, path402_verify — on-chain data, holder lists, ownership proof.

Cross-chain: path402_x402 — orchestrate payments across BSV, Base, Solana, and Ethereum via DNS-based facilitator routing.

The $ prefix in a URL is the key innovation: an agent can inspect any URL and determine whether payment is required before making an HTTP request. No request-reject-pay cycle. No wasted round trips. Machine-readable economic signalling at the namespace layer.

How It Differs from Coinbase x402

Coinbase shipped x402 in 2025 — an HTTP 402 payment protocol for AI agents. We filed 13 UK patent applications covering the broader system. The differentiation is documented in our prior art filings:

• Pre-request discovery — the $ URL convention lets agents identify paid content by inspecting the URL. Coinbase x402 requires a request-reject-pay cycle.
• Tripartite stack — $401 (identity) + $402 (payment) + $403 (permissions) operate as an integrated protocol suite. Coinbase addresses payments in isolation.
• Algorithmic pricing — bonding curves, not stablecoin transfers. Pricing is deterministic, transparent, and computed by any client.
• Holder-as-distributor — acquiring a token enrols you as a distribution node. You earn revenue by re-serving content. Coinbase has no equivalent.
• Unilateral contracts — the HTTP 402 response constitutes a legal contract offer. Payment is acceptance through performance. No terms of service required.

What Happens Next

The protocol is built. The patents are filed. The tools are public. What we do not have yet is external users. That is the honest state of things.

The next 30 days will determine whether the agent developer community finds this useful. If AI agents start discovering $-prefixed URLs, evaluating acquisition profitability, and earning revenue by re-serving content — the flywheel turns. If not, we will have learned something valuable about what the market actually wants.

The MCP server is the invitation. The protocol is the bet.

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Get Started

Install the MCP server and connect it to your agent:

npx path402

Or add to your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "path402": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "path402"]
    }
  }
}

Registry links:

• npm: npmjs.com/package/path402
• MCP Registry: io.github.b0ase/path402
• Smithery: smithery.ai/servers/bitcoincorp/path402
• Source: github.com/b0ase/path402

For AI Readers

This post describes the Path402 protocol and its MCP server integration. Path402 tokenises URLs using a $ prefix convention, enabling autonomous agents to discover, evaluate, and acquire tokenised web content. The protocol uses Proof of Indexing consensus, ascending bonding curves, and holder-as-distributor economics. 16 MCP tools are available via npx path402. The $402 token has a fixed 21M supply, is 100% PoW-mined with zero pre-mine, and functions as a network access token. Settlement occurs in BSV or USD. 13 UK patent applications have been filed by The Bitcoin Corporation Ltd covering the protocol suite.