Rent Your Focus. Bill by the Second. Become a Human API.

Turn human time into a metered resource — experts, coaches, influencers, and consultants become continuously billable APIs with per-minute pull payments.

Pitch of the Core Idea

People approve “rent my focus.” Others pull minutes of attention, responses, consulting, gameplay, coaching. You become a continuously billable API.

Tributary’s pull-payment primitive turns human time into a metered resource. A user sets a per-minute rate and availability window. When someone wants their attention, the protocol pulls funds continuously from the requester’s pre-approved budget and connects the two parties. No invoices. No “send me a payment first.” No wallet popup per interaction. The billing is invisible and continuous — like leaving a meter running.

The demand side is equally compelling. Want to talk to a specific crypto founder? A legal expert? A dating coach? Their rate is right there. Approve the budget, get connected. No scheduling friction, no back-and-forth on pricing. Instant access to human expertise, metered precisely.

Core Mechanics

1. Provider Setup: Expert creates profile → sets per-minute rate (e.g., $5/min) → defines availability window → Tributary activates PayAsYouGo billing
2. Consumer Request: Consumer browses experts → selects one → approves budget (e.g., $50) → connects via voice/video/text
3. Metered Billing: Clock runs during session → Tributary pulls incrementally from consumer’s approved budget → credits provider in real-time
4. Session End: Consumer hangs up or budget exhausted → final settlement → provider receives earnings instantly
5. Reputation System: Ratings, reviews, total minutes sold, revenue-per-hour metrics
6. Gamification: Streaks, leaderboards, “most expensive attention” rankings

Tributary Primitives Used:

• PayAsYouGo for continuous per-minute billing
• ComposablePolicy for different session types (voice, text, group)
• Lighthouse for real-time rate validation and balance checks
• Forward for instant settlement to provider wallets

Psychological Hook and Addictiveness

“I am a continuously billable API.” That sentence rewires how people think about their own time. Once you internalize that every minute has a price and someone will pay it, procrastination becomes expensive and focus becomes revenue. The platform doesn’t just facilitate transactions — it creates a marketplace where human attention becomes a tradeable, metered commodity. Like AWS but for people.

For providers: Watching your balance tick up in real-time while you talk is dopamine on tap. Every conversation literally pays you, second by second. For consumers: Frictionless access to anyone. No negotiation, no waiting. Just approve and connect. Status signaling: Higher rates = higher perceived value. A leaderboard of “most expensive attention” creates a Veblen good dynamic. Gamification: Streaks, total minutes sold, revenue-per-hour leaderboards.

Brief Market Research

The global expert network industry surpassed $2.5 billion in 2024, growing 9% year-over-year. The market is projected to reach $6.1 billion by 2030 (8.5% CAGR). The US market alone is $1.8 billion. Consulting remains the spending engine (~50% of industry spend), while corporates are now the adoption engine (~45% of clients by number).

Key Competitors:

• GLG (Gerson Lehrman Group): Market leader, $1B+ revenue, 900K+ experts, enterprise-focused
• AlphaSights: Fast-growing, $100M+ revenue, strong in private equity and consulting
• Guidepoint: $200M+ revenue, 900K+ experts, strong compliance focus
• Third Bridge: $150M+ revenue, focused on private equity and hedge funds
• Capvision: $100M+ revenue, strong in Asia-Pacific markets

The expert network market is dominated by enterprise-focused platforms with high minimum engagements ($500-5000 per call). The opportunity is democratizing access — making expert attention available to individuals, not just Fortune 500 companies. Tributary’s micro-payment capability enables per-minute billing at scale.

Business Model

Revenue Streams:

• Transaction Fee: 5-10% on every billable minute (provider pays)
• Premium Features: Priority listing, analytics, scheduling tools — $19-99/month
• Enterprise API: Companies integrate expert access into their workflows — $500-5000/month
• Verified Expert Program: Background checks, credential verification — $99-299 one-time

Cost Structure:

• Solana transaction fees: ~$0.00025 per minute billing
• Infrastructure: $2000-5000/month for video/audio infrastructure
• Customer support: $1000-3000/month at scale
• Marketing: $5-15 per acquired user

Unit Economics: At 1,000 experts billing average $5/min for 10 hours/month, platform revenue is ~$25,000/month (10% fee) minus $8,000/month costs = $17,000/month profit.

Summary of Technical Specifications

Architecture

• Frontend: React web app with mobile-responsive design
• Backend: Node.js/Express API for user management, scheduling, matching
• Video/Audio: WebRTC for real-time communication
• Billing: Solana program for continuous per-minute pulls via Tributary

How This Hooks Into Tributary

• PayAsYouGo: Core primitive — continuous per-minute billing within approved budget
• ComposablePolicy: Different rates for voice, text, group sessions
• Lighthouse: Real-time rate validation and balance checks during sessions
• Forward: Instant settlement to provider wallets after session ends

Recommended Tech Stack

• Blockchain: Solana (low fees essential for per-minute billing)
• Framework: Anchor for Solana program, React frontend
• SDK: Tributary SDK for payment flows
• Real-Time: WebRTC for video/audio, Socket.io for text chat
• Scheduling: Cal.com or custom scheduling integration

MVP Scope

2-3 Day Hackathon Build:

• Simple provider profiles with per-minute rates
• Basic session booking and WebRTC connection
• Tributary integration for per-minute billing
• Simple dashboard showing earnings and session history

Not in MVP: Scheduling calendar, group sessions, enterprise API, verified expert program.

Non-Technological Requirements

• Provider Acquisition: Need experts willing to list — crypto founders, developers, consultants
• Quality Control: Verification of credentials, ratings, reviews — trust is critical
• Legal/Compliance: Are these financial services? Employment? Something new? Unclear regulatory landscape
• Support Infrastructure: Dispute resolution, harassment prevention, refund mechanisms
• Cold Start Problem: Needs density on both sides — a marketplace with 3 experts isn’t interesting

Potential Risks

• Race to the Bottom: If anyone can list, rates collapse. Curation and verification become critical
• Attention Fragmentation: People optimizing for billable minutes may degrade conversation quality
• Regulatory Gray Zone: Are these financial services? Employment? Something new? Unclear
• Harassment Vector: High-spend users may feel entitled to demanding behavior. Needs robust blocking and refund mechanisms
• Cold Start Problem: Needs density on both sides. A marketplace with 3 experts isn’t interesting
• Trust Risk: Experts need to trust they’ll get paid, consumers need to trust they’ll get value — reputation system is critical