In May 2025, a federal court ordered OpenAI to retain all output data logs, including chat history deleted by users, for evidentiary purposes in The New York Times copyright infringement lawsuit. In response to this privacy precedent, the Ethereum Foundation launched zkAPI on the Ethereum mainnet.
zkAPI is an artificial intelligence (AI) payment infrastructure powered by zero-knowledge proof technology. The system decouples the payer’s identity from incoming AI requests. AI model providers only receive what the user asks, while the payment layer strictly logs the transaction amount. Neither party has any way to link user identity with query contents.
Anonymous Validation Process
Users begin the process by depositing crypto assets in ETH or USDC into a vault contract. When a user submits an AI query, the system validates it via ZK proofs. The transaction validation process runs automatically without exposing names or original payment data trails.
The server receiving the query verifies the cryptographic proof and immediately issues a temporary API key. The key is capped at a specific dollar amount and only allowed to live briefly in the user device’s memory, preventing residual data tracking over the long term.
The innovation stems from a collaboration with the Open Anonymity Project, originating from a technical proposal introduced by Davide Crapis and Vitalik Buterin on the Ethereum Research forum last February. Alongside the main protocol launch, Ethereum also introduced OA Chat, a browser-based private chat application that runs directly without installation. Its code is open source and available on GitHub.
Targeting Machine Traffic
Davide Crapis, who leads the dAI team at the Ethereum Foundation, aims for the Ethereum network to serve as the primary settlement layer for AI operations. He predicts that the majority of Ethereum network traffic over the next three to five years will come from AI agent (machine) activity rather than human transactions.
To broaden its adoption, developers designed zkAPI to be fully compatible with OpenRouter, an open gateway to hundreds of different AI models. Any application operating with standard OpenAI formatting can now connect its services directly into this privacy-preserving protocol.
Yet to Pass Formal Audit
Despite promising an extra layer of identity security for AI users, the protocol remains labeled as experimental. The Ethereum Foundation emphasized that no formal security audit has yet evaluated the reliability of zkAPI’s smart contract code.
Launching straight to mainnet provides a tangible pushback against Big Tech’s data monopoly, even though early-stage software vulnerability risks have not been fully tested by independent auditors. Reported by Decrypt.
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
