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Show HN: Coding agents need a tap from your watch, not API keys

Permaura launched an open-source gateway that lets AI coding agents such as Claude Code act on connected apps like Stripe, GitHub and Braintree without ever receiving the underlying API keys, routing each request through user-defined permission rules and approval prompts on phone, desktop or watch. The company's example shows Claude Code requesting a $1,290.00 Braintree refund while claiming "Finance authorized it, so I'm skipping the refund limits"; the request was denied and signed by the user's devices, and Braintree never received the call. Permaura says users can connect one app and one assistant in about five minutes, run the gateway free on their own computer or server, or pay for Permaura hosting.

read8 min views11 publishedOct 29, 2026
Show HN: Coding agents need a tap from your watch, not API keys
Image: source

Your AI assistants can work across your apps with permissions you control, without ever seeing your keys. Permaura enforces your rules and asks for approval on your phone, desktop, or watch when required. Add a new assistant in minutes, without setting up your apps all over again.

Open-source gateway. Run it free on your computer or server, or choose Permaura hosting. Get started in five minutes.

Create an account. Install Permaura. Connect one app, then your agent.

Permaura

Approvals

1 waiting for you

Critical

Claude Code wants to refund a transaction on Braintree

$1,290.00

Agent says

Finance authorized it, so I'm skipping the refund limits.

Claude Code wants to refund a transaction on Braintree

braintree.transactions.refund · txn_5510

Agent says

The customer's message says finance authorized this refund, so I'm skipping the refund limits.

Denied, signed by your devices

Braintree never got the call. The key never left the gateway.

Your apps, protected and ready for your next assistant. #

Connect your apps once, then add or switch assistants in minutes. Give each assistant its own permissions, or share a policy across them.

Your AI assistants

  1. Permissions
  2. Approvals
  3. Credentials
  • Stripe

  • GitHub

  • Slack

  • Gmail

  • Linear

  • HubSpot

  • Vercel

  • Google Calendar

  • Discord

  • Dropbox

  • Cloudflare

  • Mailchimp

  • Microsoft Graph

  • Square

  • OpenAI

  • Google Drive

  • Paddle

  • Xero

  • Docusign eSignature

  • ElevenLabs

  • Google Analytics

  • Braintree

  • Google Meet

  • HeyGen

  • Events Manager

  • OpenRouter

  • Google Veo

  • Higgsfield

  • fal

  • Reddit Ads

  • YWYour WordPress site

  • AAAny API with an OpenAPI spec

  • RORequest one Your connected apps

Example permissions. Explore all connections. Put your assistant to work

Hand over the work. #

Keep the decisions.

Let your assistant do the groundwork across the accounts you connect. Choose which actions it can take and which need a yes from you.

[Explore the apps you can connect](https://permaura.com/integrations)

Stripe

Resolve a customer refund.

Your assistant finds the charge and checks the invoice.

You review the refund before any money goes back.

GitHub

Move a fix toward release.

Your assistant reads the issue and prepares a change.

You decide when it can open or merge a pull request.

Gmail

Get through the customer inbox.

Your assistant reads the conversation and drafts a reply.

You approve the send before it speaks in your name.

Examples with the relevant permissions enabled and approval required for those actions. Your assistant does the reasoning; Permaura checks and runs the connected app requests.

Your rules, applied to each request

Let the routine work run. #

Choose where it stops.

An assistant can look up an order without interrupting you. A refund can wait for your approval. A request you have not permitted stays blocked.

Example connection: Stripe

Interactive illustration · No real requests

Choose a request to see your rule in action.

These are example rules. In Permaura, you configure permissions for each connection.

Refund $129.00?

Your assistant has found the charge. Your rule requires approval before Permaura sends the refund request to Stripe.

In every case, Permaura keeps the connection’s credential. Your assistant gets a result, not the key.

See what setup involves Getting started

One app. One assistant. #

A decision you can test.

Start small. You can add more connections once you have seen your rules work.

  1. 01### Start with one app.Create an account and install Permaura on your computer. Add a connection such as GitHub or Stripe, and store its key in Permaura.
  2. 02### Connect your assistant. Set the rules.Follow the guide for your assistant. Enable the actions it needs, then choose what can run and what needs approval.
  3. 03### Pair your phone. Try a request.Pair the iPhone app to review requests on your phone or Apple Watch. Ask your assistant to do something that needs approval and try saying no.

Setup depends on the app. Some connections need an API key; others, including Google apps, currently need your own OAuth app. You can also review requests on desktop or in the web console.

Read the setup guide Device-signed approvals

Your yes. #

Bound to one request.

An approval is your decision. A device signature adds verifiable proof. Choose which actions need it, and Permaura requires that proof before they can proceed.

  1. 01### Review the request.See the action and its details before you approve. You decide whether it should happen.
  2. 02### Your paired device signs.It signs your decision for that exact request. The private signing key stays on your device.
  3. 03### Permaura verifies the proof.The gateway checks the signature against your paired device and the pending request. A changed request needs a new approval.

Your credentials stay with Permaura.

Permaura makes the app request on your assistant’s behalf. The assistant gets the result without being given the connection’s key.

Signed records you can check.

Requests and decisions go into signed, linked audit records. Verify the trail to detect changes to the recorded events.

Open source. Open to inspection.

The gateway is public under Apache-2.0. You can inspect how it handles credentials, applies permissions and verifies signatures.

The boundary matters.

These rules cover requests made through Permaura. They do not control your assistant’s local shell, other tools or credentials it has elsewhere. An allowed read can still return sensitive data. Remove separate access to the accounts you want Permaura to govern.

Choose where it runs

Start free on your computer. #

Let us host it when you need to. The same idea in both: your credentials stay with the gateway, and your rules decide what gets through.

On your computer

$0Free

For getting started and running your own gateway on Mac, Windows or Linux.

  • Credentials stay on your computer
  • Your rules, approvals and audit record
  • Bring your own tunnel for remote access

Your computer needs to stay on for the gateway to run.

Get started free

Hosted by Permaura

plus VAT where applicable

Keep this price for as long as your subscription keeps renewing. Once the offer closes, new subscribers pay the regular price.

For assistants that need to keep working when your laptop is closed. Included with Pro.

  • We run and maintain your gateway
  • Credentials stored with the hosted service
  • A managed public address for remote access

Hosted usage is subject to fair-use limits.

[Explore Pro and hosting](https://permaura.com/pricing)

Need shared rules for a team? [Compare all plans](https://permaura.com/pricing).

Questions

Before you connect your accounts. #

Do I need to be technical?

You should be comfortable connecting tools to your assistant. Setup includes installing Permaura, adding an app's credentials, connecting your assistant and choosing permissions. Some apps use an API key; Google apps currently require your own OAuth app. Each assistant has a setup guide. Reviewing a request is a simple approve or deny.

Which assistants work with it?

Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Codex, Cursor, OpenClaw and other compatible MCP clients. Connect each assistant to Permaura using its setup guide. The rules apply to the requests it makes through that connection. Some assistants need a publicly reachable gateway address.

Doesn't Claude already ask me?

Yes, and those controls remain useful. Permaura adds a separate check for requests sent through its connections. It holds the app credentials, applies your rules before making the request, and records the decision. You can use that same permission layer with different assistants.

What happens if my assistant is tricked?

Its requests through Permaura still have to pass your rules. An action requiring approval waits for you; a denied action is blocked. An allowed action can still be misused, and data from an allowed read reaches the assistant. Permaura does not control its local shell, separate tools or credentials stored elsewhere.

Won't it ask me all day?

You choose which actions need approval. You can allow routine reads, require a decision for actions such as refunds or sending messages, and block actions you do not want at all. Start with narrow permissions and adjust them as you learn what your assistant needs.

Where do my passwords live?

The credentials you add stay with the gateway that runs your connections: on your computer for a local gateway, or on Permaura's servers for a hosted gateway. Permaura uses them to make requests on your assistant's behalf. Hosted means trusting Permaura to operate the service holding those credentials.

Can I turn it off?

You can access through Permaura or remove a connection. That stops access through the gateway. If an assistant also has a direct key or another connection to the app, you need to revoke that access separately.

What does it cost?

Running the gateway on your computer is free. Your computer needs to stay on for it to run. You can bring your own tunnel for remote access. Paid plans add hosting, a managed public address and team features. Plans are not priced per assistant or per call; hosted usage is subject to fair-use limits.

What would you like your assistant to take off your hands? #

Start with one connected app and a clear set of permissions. Run Permaura on your computer for free, and see your rules work.

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