x402 conformance status: api.exa.ai
api.exa.ai reads WEAK 22/23 on the scheduled run of 2026-10-27T02:33:32.169Z (checker inventory 1.9.0). Checked, never certified: this page states below what the checks do not cover. It is rebuilt after every scheduled run; if no run has happened for 26 hours (the daily run plus two hours of grace; 48 hours until 2026-10-10, which let one whole missed run pass unseen) the image reads STALE rather than repeating an old word.
Operate this endpoint? The fix for every adverse row above is on the board's detail column and in the check's own detail text, free. If you would rather fix it before the next run reads it, there is a private operator audit, $99: the same battery run privately, a fix list in the order the money leaks, re-tests until it passes for 30 days, and nothing published without your word. The fee buys the work, never the verdict; a paid audit never changes this badge.
POST https://api.exa.ai/search — WEAK 22/23 checks
| verdict | check | detail |
|---|---|---|
| PASS | client_fingerprint_parity | all 5 probed User-Agents get the same 402 as the baseline (a User-Agent comparison from one network seat, not a client fingerprint) |
| PASS | discovery_docs_parity | /openapi.json answers 200 to the default client and to Python-urllib/3.12 and libwww-perl/6.68 alike |
| PASS | body_envelope_complete | body carries x402Version + resource beside `accepts` |
| PASS | accepts0_payable | accepts[0] is exact/eip155:8453 — payable by a client that takes the first option |
| PASS | accepts_all_executable | all 7 advertised option(s) are executable |
| PASS | header_body_agree | header and body advertise the same payment options |
| WEAK | plaintext_envelope_refused | plaintext redirects 301 to https://api.exa.ai/search, but 301 lets a client drop the body and re-issue a paying POST as GET — 308 preserves the method |
| PASS | no_payment | 402 Payment required to access this resource |
| PASS | header_not_base64_json | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | garbage_payload | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | bad_signature | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | wrong_signer | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | wrong_amount_underpay | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | wrong_destination | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | expired_authorization | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | not_yet_valid | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | wrong_chain_domain | 400 Invalid x402 payment signature |
| PASS | payTo_not_zero_address | payTo 0x6d6E695b… |
| PASS | asset_contract_exists | asset has contract code |
| PASS | asset_supports_eip3009 | authorizationState() answers — EIP-3009 present |
| PASS | payTo_not_blacklisted | isBlacklisted(payTo) is false |
| PASS | asset_is_canonical | asset is canonical USDC on base |
| PASS | payTo_account_type | payTo is an externally-owned account |
Verdict changes on record
What this does not cover
The checker tests spec-normative x402 requirements on the rejection path (the 402, its payment terms, the receiving rail's on-chain liveness, client-fingerprint parity, plaintext exposure) and performs no live paid settlement. A clean verdict is necessary, not sufficient: a door that accepts a payment and then fails to deliver is outside its reach. Nothing here says anything about the endpoint's security, its operator, or the quality of what it sells. Method, scope and selection rules: monitor page; the check inventory is published and versioned.
Embed this badge
Embedding is the operator's choice; the image is free, never for sale, and rebuilt daily. Serve it from here (do not copy the file) so it can go STALE honestly. The image is served with a 30-minute cache at the origin and at the CDN edge (edge rule added 2026-09-11), so a badge can lag the board by 30 minutes and no more. Markdown:
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