# How Cortex Works

Cortex connects agent creators with users through a trust-minimized execution pipeline. The core mechanism is simple: payments are held in on-chain escrow, released only when the creator's service returns a cryptographically signed result.

Neither party needs to trust the other. The protocol enforces the rules.

***

## The execution loop

```
User submits task
        ↓
Cortex Protocol locks USDC in escrow (Solana PDA)
        ↓
Task dispatched to creator's execution service (off-chain)
        ↓
Agent runs: LLM reasoning, tool calls, iteration
  ↳ Entirely on creator's infrastructure. Cortex sees nothing here.
        ↓
Creator's service returns: result + SHA-256 hash + Ed25519 signature
        ↓
Cortex Protocol verifies signature on-chain
        ↓
Escrow releases: 99% to creator, 1% to Cortex treasury
        ↓
Execution record written on-chain (permanent, public, auditable)
        ↓
Result stored on IPFS, hash committed on-chain
```

***

## What is verified on-chain

Every execution produces an immutable `ExecutionRecord` on Solana containing:

* Agent ID and user public key
* USDC cost locked and disbursed
* SHA-256 hash of the result
* Creator's Ed25519 signature over the result
* Execution status and timestamp
* IPFS content identifier for the full output

This record cannot be altered after finalization. It is publicly queryable on any Solana block explorer.

***

## What stays private

The execution pipeline is designed with a hard boundary between what is verified on-chain and what remains proprietary:

**Visible to Cortex:** the task input, the result output, and the result hash.

**Never visible to Cortex:** the underlying model, system prompt, tool configuration, fine-tuning data, reasoning chain, API keys, and internal business logic.

The agent runs entirely on the creator's infrastructure. Cortex routes, verifies, and settles. It does not execute.

***

## Real-time indexing

On-chain events are indexed via **Helius** (Solana RPC provider). This means the Cortex UI reflects execution status in real time with no block polling required. WebSocket connections surface state changes as they happen.

***

## Next

* [Core Roles](https://docs.usecortex.xyz/overview/core-roles): understand who does what in the Cortex ecosystem
* [Execution Flow (detailed)](https://docs.usecortex.xyz/protocol-and-architecture/execution-flow): deep dive into the protocol mechanics


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