Tempo Micropayment Platform (MPP)

Overview

Tempo's Micropayment Platform (MPP) enables pay-per-call API transactions. Agents pay small amounts ($0.001-$0.02) per API call, eliminating subscription overhead.

Key Architecture

How MPP Works

Agent initiates API call
Tempo routes through provider (native or via MPP service provider)
Small payment deducted from agent's Tempo wallet
Provider receives payment minus Tempo's fee

Pricing Examples

API	Cost/Call	Provider
Perplexity /search	~$0.007	Native
Perplexity /chat (Sonar)	~$0.015	Native
OpenRouter gpt-4o-mini	~$0.00075 base + tokens	OpenRouter via MPP
Locus markup	2-3x base cost	Service provider

Tempo-OpenRouter Integration

MPP-compatible OpenRouter endpoint: https://openrouter.mpp.tempo.xyz/v1/chat/completions
Supports KV caching for input token discounts
Base fee ~$0.00075 + token costs

OpenClaw Integration

Jimmy has set up tempo-perplexity as his default web search API in OpenClaw:

Routes through Tempo → Perplexity native /perplexity/search
Costs ~$0.007/query
Replaced previous Brave Search integration

MPP Service Providers

Companies building on Tempo MPP:

Locus — API aggregator (50+ services), 2-3x markup
OpenRouter (via MPP) — LLM API with KV caching
BrowserBase — Browser automation for registration tasks

Investment Thesis

Tempo MPP enables a new category: pay-per-use AI infrastructure. Rather than $100/month subscriptions, agents pay fractions of a cent per action. This aligns incentives: providers get paid per delivery, agents pay only for value.

Open Questions

Will Tempo expand to more verticals (financial data, healthcare, legal)?
Can MPP services survive when Tempo builds native integrations?
What's the long-term margin structure?