Let your AI agent ask before it acts.

How to use Gate

Three steps, about two minutes. Nothing to install.

1. Get a free key

   Enter your email in the sign-up form. Your key appears right away and is shown once, so save it. No credit card. Approving your first approval email confirms your address.

2. Paste one block into your agent

   Copy this into your agent's instructions: its bot instructions, system prompt or rules file. Put your key in place of YOUR_GATE_KEY and the approver's email in place of you@example.com. When you sign up, we fill in both for you. On the Free plan the approver is the email you signed up with; Pro can ask anyone.

   Copy

   Gate approval rule
   
   Before you send any message or email, spend or move money, change or delete data, or make any API call that changes something outside this chat, ask a person for approval through Gate first. Read-only actions don't need approval.
   
   Step 1. Ask. Send this HTTP request:
   POST https://gateapprove.com/approvals
   Authorization: Bearer YOUR_GATE_KEY
   Content-Type: application/json
   
   {"title": "<one short line: what you want to do>",
    "description": "<why, and anything the approver should know>",
    "action_payload": {<the exact action and its details>},
    "requester_name": "<your name as an agent>",
    "channel": "email",
    "approver_email": "you@example.com",
    "expires_in_seconds": 3600}
   
   Save the "id" from the answer.
   
   Step 2. Wait for the answer. Every 15 seconds, send:
   GET https://gateapprove.com/approvals/{id}
   Authorization: Bearer YOUR_GATE_KEY
   
   - "status": "approved" means go ahead. Do exactly the action you described, nothing more.
   - "status": "rejected" or "expired" means stop. Do not act, and tell me it was not approved.
   - "status": "pending" means keep waiting.
   
   Never act without "approved". If Gate returns an error or can't be reached, do not act.
   API reference: https://gateapprove.com/docs

3. Approve from your inbox

   When your agent wants to do something risky, Gate emails the approver an "Approval needed" message with Approve and Reject. They tap one and confirm. See what they get.

   Your agent goes ahead only on approved. If the request is rejected, or nobody answers in time, it stops.

curl -X POST https://gateapprove.com/signup \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email": "you@example.com"}'

{"api_key": "<your new key>", "plan": "free", "monthly_limit": 25,
 "email_verified": false, "unverified_email_limit": 3,
 "note": "Store this key now; it is shown once. Approving your first approval email confirms your sign-up address; until then this key can send 3 approval emails. No email within a minute? Check your junk or spam folder."}

curl -X POST https://gateapprove.com/approvals \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_GATE_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "title": "Refund $450 to customer #1832",
    "description": "Customer reports a double charge on order 5521.",
    "action_payload": {"action": "stripe.refund", "amount_cents": 45000, "currency": "usd"},
    "requester_name": "support-bot",
    "channel": "email",
    "approver_email": "you@example.com",
    "expires_in_seconds": 3600
  }'

{"id": "apr_x7k2m9q4w8e1r5t3y6u0i2o7", "status": "pending", "channel": "email",
 "approver_email": "you@example.com", "expires_at": "2026-10-28T11:15:00Z",
 "decided_at": null, "decided_by": null, ...}

curl https://gateapprove.com/approvals/apr_x7k2m9q4w8e1r5t3y6u0i2o7 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_GATE_KEY"

{"id": "apr_x7k2m9q4w8e1r5t3y6u0i2o7", "status": "approved",
 "decided_by": "email:you@example.com", "decided_at": "2026-10-28T10:17:42Z", ...}