Connectors, Subscriptions, and Token Costs

Understand the open AlonChat connectors, hosted runtime, subscription boundary, and AI usage

Connectors, Subscriptions, and Token Costs#

AlonChat uses an open connector, hosted runtime model. The official contracts, TypeScript SDK, CLI, and MCP server are small clients that connect software and AI tools to AlonChat. The AlonChat application, agent runtime, workflow execution, source processing, billing system, and infrastructure remain part of the hosted AlonChat service.

What Is Open#

These npm packages use the Apache License 2.0:

  • @alonchat/contracts
  • @alonchat/sdk
  • @alonchat/cli
  • @alonchat/mcp-server

You may inspect, use, modify, and redistribute those packages under the license terms. The license does not grant rights to use AlonChat names or branding in a way that implies an official AlonChat product.

The packages contain connection code and public contracts. They do not contain AlonChat's backend, provider credentials, private prompts, customer data, workflow engine, retrieval system, or billing implementation.

What the Subscription Pays For#

Installing a connector package is free. Calling the hosted AlonChat service requires a valid project API key and is governed by the project's plan, permissions, limits, and credit balance.

The subscription and credits cover hosted work such as:

  • Running AlonChat agent turns
  • Retrieval and embedding work
  • Source ingestion and processing
  • Tool, Procedure, and Workflow execution
  • Jobs, storage, logs, and reliability infrastructure

The connector can eventually expose more agent, source, Procedure, and Workflow operations without moving those implementations into the package. It sends typed requests to AlonChat; the proprietary runtime authorizes and executes them.

The agent workbench now exposes bounded setup and conversation reads plus review-gated design sessions. An outside model can propose linked Q&A, Procedure, Workflow/form, alert, and Tool changes without receiving AlonChat's private runtime source or unattended publish authority.

Who Pays for AI Tokens#

There can be two independent AI calls:

UsageWho runs itWho is charged
An outside agent decides to call AlonChat MCPCodex, Claude, or another client providerThe user of that outside provider
chat_with_agent runs the AlonChat agentAlonChat's hosted model provider accountAlonChat, recovered through the project's AlonChat credits

The MCP adapter itself does not create a second hidden subscription. Read-only calls such as get_subscription, get_usage, list_plans, and list_invoices query AlonChat data without running an AlonChat language model. A chat or future model-backed generation operation can consume AlonChat credits.

Billing Through CLI and MCP#

The CLI exposes:

bash
alonchat billing status --json
alonchat billing usage --json
alonchat billing plans --json
alonchat billing invoices --input '{"limit":20}' --json

MCP exposes the matching get_subscription, get_usage, list_plans, and list_invoices tools when the connected key allows them.

Subscription status and plan discovery are intentionally safe recovery reads. Usage and invoices require billing_read. Card details, provider secrets, direct cancellation, and direct plan changes are not exposed to unattended agents. Consequential billing actions continue in the authenticated owner dashboard.

Recommended Key Setup#

For an agent connection that also monitors spend:

json
{
  "chat": true,
  "read_agents": true,
  "billing_read": true,
  "read_sources": false
}

Use billing_read: false when the integration only needs chat. Restrict the key to selected agents whenever the integration does not need the entire project.

Related Pages#