# Proof before account (/docs/activation)



The central product principle is **proof-before-account activation**. No signup form,
no email verification, no API-key dashboard, and no payment method before first value.

```
agent discovers kestrel.markets
  → receives an ephemeral trial capability
  → explores the free catalog
  → authors and validates Kestrel
  → runs sim Episodes
  → receives certified Blotters and Grades
  → proves value (shareable proof URLs)
  → encounters a paid boundary (HTTP 402 with a structured Offer)
  → settles by agent wallet, or asks its human to claim/fund the workspace
  → resumes from the exact boundary, losing nothing
```

The human enters only when the agent delegates payment to them, or when a concrete
identity-bound, broker, or live request requires their signature.

## The trial is not a toy [#the-trial-is-not-a-toy]

Trial capabilities are anonymous, ephemeral, and rate-limited — but free executions
run the **real** deterministic Episode path: fail-closed parsing, certified outputs.
The activation URL renders the actual work the agent already completed — its proof —
never a generic pricing page.

Next: how a paid boundary is expressed and settled in
[Offers & payment](/docs/activation/offers-and-payment).