Compatibility intelligence for AI agents

Before your agent buys, it asks: will this work?

Tethered Trust is the compatibility layer that shopping, procurement, repair and install agents call before they purchase, replace, install or recommend something. Send what the customer owns and what's being considered, as URLs, model numbers, SKUs or descriptions. Get back a structured verdict, evidence with sources and freshness, and a signed receipt. Unfamiliar products are researched on demand; anything we can't support with evidence comes back insufficient_evidence, never a guess.

1,109products with specs checked against a cited manufacturer source (of 1,144 in the catalog)
13categories
2wrong “it fits” answers in 130 benchmark questions, including held-out sets
9problems caught before purchase
How it works

One call between "find a replacement" and "buy"

An agent hands over the customer's equipment and the candidate product. Tethered Trust does the compatibility work and hands back something the agent can act on.

1DiscoverIdentify each product from a URL, model number, SKU, UPC or description
2ExtractRead specs from our reviewed catalog, or research the manufacturer's page on demand
3NormalizeExpress both sides as standards and limits: mounts, connectors, platforms, part numbers, sizes, versions, weights
4EvaluateDeterministic rules: match, documented adapter, or mismatch, for every standard and limit
5VerifyLabel every input by evidence level; unsupported inputs never decide

Verdict

supported, conditional (with the adapter, hub or check required), incompatible or insufficient_evidence (with the exact question that settles it).

Evidence

Each fact with its source URL, how it was obtained (reviewed, read from the manufacturer's page, your text) and when it was checked.

Receipt

A signed decision record (EdDSA JWS) with a valid-until date, and a recheck before the order is placed.

Then the agent decides: purchase, ask the customer the returned question, or find an alternative (fix_purchase_plan proposes one).

Agent-native

Your agent never needs this website

  • Discover: server.json (the MCP Registry listing file), /.well-known/mcp.json, llms.txt, OpenAPI 3.1
  • Connect: one MCP endpoint (Streamable HTTP) or plain HTTP; no key needed to start
  • Identify anything: identify_product takes URLs, model numbers, SKUs, UPCs or descriptions
  • Decide: check_compatibility, validate_purchase_plan, fix_purchase_plan
  • Pay per request: x402 (USDC on Base) or prepaid credits; 402 responses say how
  • Retry safely: every error carries code, retryable and retry_after_seconds
  • Close the loop: report_outcome and signed webhooks when a record behind a decision changes
// MCP: https://tetheredtrust.com/mcp
tools/call identify_product
{"product": "https://www.sanus.com/en_US/products/tv-mounts/vlt7/"}

→ {"status": "verified",
   "standards": {"provides": [{"id": "vesa:400x300", ...}]},
   "limits": {"needs": {"weight-lb": {"max": 150},
                        "screen-size-in": {"min": 42, "max": 90}}},
   "evidence": [{"level": "reviewed_source", "url": "..."}]}

tools/call check_compatibility
{"existing": "TCL 65QM8K", "candidate": "Sanus VLT7"}

→ {"decision": "supported",
   "checks": [{"rule": "vesa", "ok": true},
              {"rule": "limit:weight-lb", "ok": true}],
   "receipt": {"id": "rcpt_…"}}
The flagship call

validate_purchase_plan

Send the setup and the cart. Get one decision your agent can act on: supported, conditional, incompatible or insufficient_evidence, plus:

  • A result for every part, with sources
  • Limits across the whole configuration: memory slots, total capacity, M.2 slots
  • Adapters and hubs the plan still needs
  • Substitutions for parts that won't work
  • The exact questions blocking a decision, and which field answers each
  • A signed receipt, and a recheck before ordering

Build a plan in the console

POST https://tetheredtrust.com/v1/plan
{"setup": [{"text": "Lenovo ThinkPad T480",
            "config": {"memory_modules": [{"capacity_gb": 8}]}}],
 "purchase": [{"text": "Crucial CT16G4SFRA32A", "quantity": 2}]}

→ {"decision": "incompatible",
   "summary": "ThinkPad T480 has 2 slots and 1 already
     in use, so 2 more won't fit. Set
     config.replace_memory if the new modules
     replace the installed ones.",
   "results": [{"name": "16GB DDR4-3200 SODIMM",
                "decision": "supported", ...}],
   "system_checks": [{"rule": "memory_slots",
                      "ok": false, ...}],
   "questions": [], "receipt": {"id": "rcpt_…"},
   "plan_id": "plan_…"}
Five compatibility domains

One engine, extended by standards, not rewrites

Every domain is expressed the same way: what a product takes or provides, and the numeric limits it has or needs. A new category is new vocabulary (GET /v1/standards), not new engine code.

Physical connections

Lens mounts, battery platforms, chargers and connectors, filters, ink and toner, bulb bases, memory and SSD slots, CPU sockets, smart-home ecosystems and hubs.

Dimensional fit

Appliances in an opening, TVs on a mount (VESA pattern, weight, screen size), graphics cards and coolers in a case, clearances and connections.

Vehicles

Tire sizes by trim, EV charging connectors and the adapters each maker approves; more vehicle standards as sources are verified.

Software and services

Minimum OS versions, app platforms, console generations and backward compatibility, streaming devices.

Everything else

Anything that has to fit, plug in, mount, run on or charge with something the customer owns: researched on demand and added to the vocabulary.

Strict evidence

We never invent compatibility to complete a purchase

Where a product's specs came fromWhat the agent gets
Checked catalog: specs taken from a specific manufacturer page and checked against it on a recorded date (re-checked monthly)A full decision. 1,109 products today.
Catalog, awaiting check: from a cited source, not yet checked against itA decision with a lower evidence score and verified: false. 35 products today.
Read from the manufacturer's page: researched on demand, facts quoted from the page, not yet reviewedA decision, but "works" becomes conditional with a verify condition, and the evidence score is lower.
Unconfirmed: an AI reading we couldn't tie to a sourceinsufficient_evidence and the question that settles it (usually: the manufacturer's page URL). A tentative reading is shown separately, marked "don't act on it".
Real verifications

See exactly what your agent would receive

Start typing a model and pick it from the list.

Try:

Free. Every answer comes with its evidence and a signed receipt. Informational only; confirm with the manufacturer.

Coverage

1,144 products, 277 standards, 13 categories

Every record traces to a manufacturer page with the date it was checked. When we don't know a product, we say so, and it joins a research queue ranked by how many integrations asked. Browse everything.

Air quality

Air purifier filters, whole-house HVAC media and humidifier pads.

68 models · 40 parts

Appliances

Refrigerator water and air filters, plus installation fit.

112 models · 33 parts

Cameras

Lens mounts and adapters, batteries and memory cards.

25 models · 31 parts

Cars & EV charging

Tire sizes, bulbs, wiper blades, battery groups, and EV charging connectors and adapters, by year, make and model.

16 models · 14 parts

Computers & consoles

RAM, M.2 SSDs and USB-C chargers for laptops, handhelds, mini PCs and consoles.

30 models · 33 parts

Cordless power tools

Battery platforms, batteries, chargers and bare tools across brands.

22 models · 47 parts

E-bikes

Batteries and chargers by drive system and mount: Bosch, Shimano, Rad Power Bikes, Lectric.

51 models · 52 parts

PC building

Motherboards, CPUs, coolers, memory kits, graphics cards, cases and power supplies: sockets, cooler mounts, memory slots, card and cooler clearance, form factors, power connectors.

79 models · 188 parts

Phones, tablets & watches

Wired and wireless chargers (USB-C PD, MagSafe, Qi2) and watch bands.

54 models · 15 parts

Printers

Ink, toner and drum units, including region locks and HP+ rules.

36 models · 44 parts

Smart home & lighting

Matter, Thread, Zigbee, HomeKit, Alexa and Google Home hubs and accessories, plus bulb bases.

19 models · 30 parts

TVs, consoles & streaming

TV wall mounts by VESA pattern, weight and screen size; console generations and backward compatibility; streaming devices and app platforms.

12 models · 10 parts

Vacuums

Bags, filters, batteries, tools and robot-vacuum parts for Dyson, Miele, iRobot and more.

40 models · 43 parts

Integrate

MCP, HTTP, SDKs and a sandbox

One MCP server with 18 tools, the same operations over HTTP (OpenAPI 3.1), copy-paste JavaScript and Python clients, and a sandbox with documented scenarios that never charges.

https://tetheredtrust.com/mcp

  • how_it_works How Tethered Trust works
  • list_coverage List coverage
  • check_cart_before_checkout Check a cart before checkout
  • enrich_catalog Enrich a product catalog
  • identify_product Identify any product
  • list_standards List the standards vocabulary
  • resolve_product Look up a product
  • validate_purchase_plan Validate a purchase plan
  • fix_purchase_plan Fix a purchase plan
  • plan_upgrade Plan an upgrade
  • identify_from_photo Read a model number from a photo
  • recheck_plan Recheck a saved plan
  • check_batch Check many pairs
  • check_compatibility Check compatibility
  • find_parts Find parts that fit
  • check_fit Check physical fit
  • verify_receipt Verify a receipt
  • report_outcome Report what happened

Connect your agent

import { TetheredTrust } from
  "https://tetheredtrust.com/sdk/tethered-trust.mjs";

const tt = new TetheredTrust({ sandbox: true });
const plan = await tt.validatePlan({
  purchase: ["ASUS TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI",
             "AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D",
             "Noctua NH-D15 G2"]
});
// plan.decision === "supported"
Pricing

Free while we grow the graph

The sandbox is always free. Production calls are free during early access within rate limits. Paid endpoints cost $0.05 per completed check and $0.25 per completed purchase plan, paid with prepaid credits or agent-native x402 payments. You're never charged for errors or “need more detail”, and the price never depends on the verdict. See pricing.

Pilot

Building a shopping, PC or repair agent?

We're working closely with a few teams: your agent's real questions, coverage added where you need it, usage reporting, and pilot pricing.

Join the pilot Read the FAQ