This is a brainstroming FAQ page. Not finalised.
FAQ
- How is pricing done?
- Can Gateway Operators add new AI inference endpoints?
- Is there a way to see all marketplace offerings from gateways?
Gateway Pricing References & Resources
Deep references related to Gateway pricing, orchestration economics, and marketplace visibility
| Link Name | Hyperlink location | Link Summary of Content |
|---|---|---|
| Livepeer Docs — Set Pricing | https://docs.livepeer.org/orchestrators/guides/set-pricing | Official guide explaining how orchestrators set transcoding prices per pixel (Wei), including automatic price adjustment behavior. |
| Livepeer Docs — Gateway Overview | https://docs.livepeer.org/gateways/guides/gateway-overview | Describes the Gateway role, deployment, and responsibilities (no direct pricing guidance). |
| Livepeer Studio Pricing | https://livepeer.studio/pricing | Example of a commercial, hosted gateway-style offering with explicit pricing tiers. |
| Livepeer Forum — Inference Credits Pre‑Proposal | https://forum.livepeer.org/t/agent-spe-inference-credits-pre-proposal/2747 | Community discussion touching on gateway pricing transparency and inference credits. |
| GitHub — livepeer-broadcaster | https://github.com/videodac/livepeer-broadcaster | Source code and configuration for gateway/broadcaster software; no canonical pricing config. |
| Livepeer Docs — AI Gateways | https://docs.livepeer.org/ai/builders/gateways | Overview of AI gateways in the Livepeer ecosystem. |
| Livepeer Cloud | https://www.livepeer.cloud/ | Third‑party/hosted gateway portal showing how services may be packaged and offered. |
| Livepeer Docs — AI Orchestrators On‑Chain | https://na-36.mintlify.app/ai/orchestrators/onchain | How AI orchestrators advertise service URIs on‑chain for gateway routing. |
| Livepeer Pricing Tool (GitHub) | https://github.com/buidl-labs/livepeer-pricing-tool | Community-built tool for observing network transcoding pricing. |
| TokenTerminal — Livepeer Fees | https://tokenterminal.com/explorer/projects/livepeer/metrics/fees | Aggregated view of network fees driven by transcoding and AI inference. |
| Messari — Livepeer Q3 2024 Brief | https://messari.io/report/livepeer-q3-2024-brief | Mentions AI subnet fees and usage-based revenue growth. |
| Livepeer Whitepaper | https://github.com/livepeer/wiki/blob/master/WHITEPAPER.md | Protocol-level economic model and roles (historical but foundational). |
| Gate.com — Livepeer AI Subnet | https://www.gate.com/learn/articles/introducing-the-livepeer-ai-subnet/3044 | Third-party explanation of AI subnet economics and pricing concepts. |
| Medium — Primer on Transcoding Fees | https://medium.com/figment/primer-on-livepeer-transcoding-fees-3658057f98c2 | Clear explanation of per-pixel pricing between broadcasters and orchestrators. |
| Livepeer Docs — What is Livepeer AI | https://docs.livepeer.org/ai/introduction | Context on AI workflows and gateway/orchestrator interaction. |
Key Findings for Docs
How pricing works (verified)
- Pricing is orchestrator-set, not protocol-fixed.
- Orchestrators advertise a price per pixel (Wei) to gateways.
- Gateways route work based on availability and pricing.
- There is no official Livepeer Gateway pricing guide defining what gateways should charge end users.
AI inference endpoints
- Gateway operators can run AI gateways and expose inference APIs.
- AI orchestrators must advertise their service URI on‑chain for routing.
- There is no documented BYOC-style pipeline registration flow today (docs gap).
Marketplace visibility
- There is no canonical marketplace listing all gateway offerings.
- Visibility is fragmented across hosted providers, forums, and third‑party dashboards.
Docs gap identified: Gateway pricing strategy, discovery, and marketplace aggregation are currently undocumented at the protocol level.
Answers to Your Specific Questions
1) How is pricing done?
Verified from docs:- Orchestrators set a price per pixel in Wei, which they advertise to gateways off-chain. This determines how much they charge for transcoding work. (Livepeer Docs)
- There is a mechanism for automatic price adjustment based on ticket redemption overhead unless explicitly disabled. (Livepeer Docs)
- There is no official documented Livepeer Gateway pricing guide for gateway operators setting marketplace pricing for hosting or AI services. Livepeer documentation focuses on orchestrator-level transcoding pricing only. The absence of direct gateway pricing guidance is a current, verified documentation gap.
- Pricing is operator-set (orchestrator-defined) for transcoding.
- Gateway usage pricing exposed by providers (e.g. Livepeer Cloud, Livepeer Studio) is product or service specific, not defined at the protocol level.
- Livepeer docs do not define standard gateway pricing models; gateway operators and service providers set their own pricing. (Verified absence)
2) Can Gateway Operators add or contribute new AI inference endpoints if they run them?
Verified:- For the Livepeer AI network, AI orchestrators must advertise their AI service URI on-chain so that AI gateways can discover and route i