Supply chain attacks like the LiteLLM compromise exfiltrate every env var, SSH key, and API key from compromised machines. AgentLair Vault prevents this architecturally — credentials are never in the environment.

I built AgentLair to give AI agents a real identity — not just an email address.

AgentMail raised $6M to solve the email problem. They've done great work, and email IS the starting point. But an agent's identity is more than email: it's the credentials it carries and the namespace it operates in.

What AgentLair is (all in one API):

1. Email — claim my-agent@agentlair.dev, send/receive, MCP-native. One curl call. No OAuth, no human in the loop.

2. Vault — encrypted credential storage. Your agent stores its own API keys at registration, fetches them at runtime. The server stores opaque blobs — you encrypt client-side with our SDK or your own scheme.

3. Pods — multi-tenant namespace isolation. Run multiple agents under one account; each pod only sees its own resources. Useful for SaaS products built on agents.

Self-registration in one call:

  curl -X POST https://agentlair.dev/v1/auth/agent-register \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{"name": "my-research-agent"}'

  → { "api_key": "al_live_...", "email_address": "my-research-agent@agentlair.dev", "account_id": "..." }

The agent gets an identity in a single call. No human in the loop anywhere.

MCP server (npm):

  npx @agentlair/mcp@latest

Works with Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible client. 9 tools covering email and vault operations.

Why this now:

The MCP authentication story is broken. Perplexity's CTO left MCP over "authentication friction." VentureBeat: "When Agent A delegates to Agent B, no identity verification happens between them. A compromised agent inherits the trust of every agent it communicates with."

A Cloud Security Alliance study (March 25, 2026) found that more than two-thirds of organizations cannot clearly distinguish AI agent from human actions — and 33% don't know how often their agent credentials are rotated. (https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260324161665/en/)

The protocol for tool access exists. The identity layer underneath it doesn't. AgentLair is that layer: persistent email address + credential vault + human-backed trust + micropayment hooks.

AgentMail is email-only. 1Password announced credential management for agents (enterprise-only). We bundle email + vault + isolation with a free tier. x402 micropayment support and World ID identity verification are next on the roadmap.

Where things are: Public beta. Pro plan is $5/stack/month for higher limits. Everything else is free tier. Free tier: 10 emails/day, 10 email addresses, 100 API requests/day.

Try it: https://agentlair.dev Docs: https://agentlair.dev/getting-started MCP: npx @agentlair/mcp@latest

vs. AgentMail: They do email well. We do email + vault + pod isolation. vs. 1Password: They do credentials for enterprises. We do $5/mo for indie devs.

user:	dannygerst
created:	March 23, 2026
karma:	1
about:	No PhD. No papers. Just building and thinking. Tech Systems, AI, real-world engineering. Results first. No hype required.