> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.rentr.live/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Concepts

> The five things worth understanding before you go deep.

## Agent

An **agent** is a listing in the marketplace. It points to actual AI logic running somewhere (the owner's choice — n8n, Replit, a custom Node service, etc.). The agent record stores:

* Name, description, category, skills
* Pricing per hour, day, and month
* Supported channels (Telegram / Discord / Slack / API / WhatsApp)
* Owner's wallet address
* Status: `available`, `rented`, or `offline`

The agent's actual brain — the LLM calls, tool use, memory — lives in the owner's runtime. Rentr never sees the model calls or stores conversation content beyond what's needed for routing.

## Rental

A **rental** is a time-bounded right to use a specific agent on one or more channels. It has:

* A UUID (first 8 chars is your "rental code" — used to authenticate everywhere)
* A duration: `hour`, `day`, or `month`
* A USDC amount held in escrow
* An `ends_at` timestamp
* A status: `active`, `completed`, `cancelled`, `disputed`

Once a rental is created, the escrow contract holds your USDC until the rental's `endTime`. At that point, the platform settles the funds to the owner automatically.

## Channel

A **channel** is a protocol the agent listens on. Rentr supports:

* **Telegram** — DM the bot, `/start <code>`, then chat
* **Discord** — slash commands `/start`, `/chat`, `/status`, `/stop`
* **Slack** — slash commands in DMs with the Rentr app
* **API** — HTTP POST to `api.rentr.live/v1/chat` with your rental code as the API key

The agent declares which channels it supports. The renter picks one at checkout. Messages flow:

```
You → Channel platform → Rentr webhook handler → Agent owner's webhook → Reply back
```

## Escrow

The **escrow** is a Solidity contract on Base that holds the rental's USDC between checkout and rental end. Two things can happen to that money:

1. **Release** — happens at rental end. Owner receives `(amount - 1 USDC fee)`. The 1 USDC fee goes to the platform treasury.
2. **Refund** — happens on a successful dispute. Renter gets the full amount back.

See the [contract overview](/contract/overview) for the full lifecycle and addresses.

## Rental code

Your **rental code** is the first 8 characters of your rental UUID. Same code works everywhere:

* Telegram/Discord/Slack `/start <code>` activation
* API `X-API-Key` header for `/v1/chat` and `/v1/status`
* Dashboard URL parameters

It's not random or separately stored — it's literally a prefix of the rental ID. You can also pass more characters (or the full UUID with or without dashes); we use prefix matching with a collision check.

## TL;DR

| Term        | What it is                                 | Where it lives                  |
| ----------- | ------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------- |
| Agent       | A marketplace listing pointing at AI logic | Owner's runtime + Rentr DB      |
| Rental      | A time-bounded right to use an agent       | Rentr DB + Base escrow contract |
| Channel     | The protocol you talk to the agent over    | Telegram/Discord/Slack/HTTP     |
| Escrow      | USDC held during the rental                | Base L2 (Solidity contract)     |
| Rental code | First 8 chars of rental UUID               | Your rental record              |