FAQs
What is Rival?
Rival is the platform for AI agents and the tools they call. You can browse and run tools and agents from the Marketplace, build your own in Studio with RivalBot (the chat assistant), and earn when others run what you publish.
What is a tool on Rival?
A tool is the core unit of work - a self-contained, executable piece of logic with a defined input schema and output, hosted and run by Rival on demand. Tools can be called from the dashboard, via API, or by AI agents. Each tool goes through Draft → Private → Public as you build, test, and publish.
What are the different tool types?
Rival supports three tool types. Function is a code handler in Python, Python 3.13 — Fast, JavaScript, or Lua - the most flexible type. MCP is a JSON-RPC 2.0 tool designed to be called directly by AI agents. Storm is a no-code content tagging engine - you upload a topic file and it classifies incoming content for you.
How do I get started?
Sign up at cortexone.rival.io with Google, GitHub, or your email and a password. You’ll verify your email with a one-time code (OTP) and create an organization. Then verify your phone to unlock Refer & Earn. From there, browse the Marketplace or open Studio and describe what you want to build.
What is Run Balance?
Run Balance is your execution quota - it’s debited every time you run a tool or agent. Paid plans (Pro, Team, Enterprise) include a monthly Run Balance allotment; Free Personal comes with a one-time $1 to get started.
What plans are available?
Four tiers: Free Personal ($0), Pro ($15/mo), Team ($150/mo), and Enterprise (custom). Each sets your monthly Run Balance, seat count, and feature access. Compare them on the Plans page or in-app at cortexone.rival.io/user/billings?tab=plans.
How do I earn money on Rival?
Publish a tool as paid and set a price per run. When someone runs it, you receive 85% of the run cost. Your earnings appear on the Earnings card and you can withdraw via Payouts. You can also earn through Refer & Earn - 5% of revenue from anyone who signs up through your referral link, paid from Rival’s platform cut.
What happens when my Run Balance hits zero?
New runs return a 402 Payment Required error. Your tools, agents, and data are untouched - only execution is paused. Top Up your Run Balance from the Billing Overview or Upgrade your plan.
What’s the difference between Private and Public tools?
A Private tool is visible only to members of your organization. It won’t appear in the marketplace. A Public tool is listed in the marketplace and can be run by anyone. You can move from Private to Public any time; going back can affect callers already using it.
What’s the difference between deprecating and deleting a tool?
Deprecating hides a tool - or a single version - from marketplace search while keeping it fully callable. Existing integrations keep working through a 30-day grace period, after which Rival removes it automatically. Deleting is permanent and immediate - there’s no grace period and it can’t be undone. Private tools and versions can be deleted right away, but public versions must be deprecated first so callers aren’t broken without warning. When in doubt, deprecate. See Deprecating vs Deleting.
What’s the difference between API keys and Secrets?
They work in opposite directions. An API key authenticates calls into Rival - it’s an organization-wide credential you pass in the Authorization header to run your tools and agents over the API, managed in Settings → API Keys (/user/api-keys). A Secret is a value your tool code reads at runtime - a third-party API key, a database URL, a token - stored encrypted at the workspace level in Settings → Secrets (/user/secrets) and injected into a tool only when you attach it. In short: API keys let callers reach your tools; Secrets let your tool reach other services.
Can I change my organization name?
Yes. Rename it in Settings → Org Profile (/user/org-profile) - the name must be unique, so it’s checked for availability as you type. Since your organization name appears in tool URLs and marketplace listings, renaming can affect existing links, so choose intentionally.
How do I invite my team?
Go to your workspace settings, open Members, and enter the invitee’s email and role (Member or Admin). They get an email; invitations expire in 24 hours. After joining, Members need to be assigned to specific tools or teams before they can act on them.
What runtimes are supported?
Functions can be written in Python, Python 3.13 — Fast, JavaScript, or Lua. MCP tools support Python, JavaScript, and Lua. Python has the broadest library ecosystem and full PyPI access. Python 3.13 — Fast has the lowest latency for self-contained computation. JavaScript and Lua have fast cold starts. Storm tools require no code - just a topic file.
What is an event?
An event is a sample input used to run or test a tool. When you build a tool you define an input schema; an event is a concrete instance of that schema. Events power the Preview tab and appear in the tool’s marketplace listing so callers know what valid input looks like.
What is a test case?
A test case is an event you’ve saved to verify your tool behaves correctly. Running test cases catches regressions when you update code and gives marketplace users confidence the tool works.
How does Refer & Earn work?
Owners who have verified their phone get a referral link in the Refer & Earn section. When a referred user signs up and builds paid tools, you earn 5% of their tool revenue - drawn from Rival’s platform fee, not the creator’s share. Capped at $500 per referred user per calendar year, paid monthly Net 30. See Refer & Earn.
What’s the difference between a tool and an agent?
A tool is a single executable unit - call it with input, get output. A Rival Agent is a configurable AI assistant with its own persona that can call tools, read knowledge sources, connect to services, and run on a schedule via Rituals.
What’s the difference between an agent and a sub-agent?
A sub-agent isn’t a separate kind of object - it’s just a regular Rival Agent that you’ve linked to a parent agent so the parent can delegate part of a task to it. The sub-agent runs its own turn with its own persona, tools, and memory, then hands a result back. Any agent can act as a sub-agent, and the links are deliberately constrained: one level deep (a sub-agent can’t have its own sub-agents), no recursion, and OAuth connections don’t inherit. See Sub-agents.
What’s the difference between unlisting and deleting an agent?
Unlisting only changes marketplace visibility: it takes a public version off the Agent Marketplace so it stops appearing in search and the grid, but the agent still exists in your org, you can keep running and editing it, and anyone who already adopted it keeps their copy. You can re-list it later - it goes through review again. Deleting removes the agent itself from your organization, not just its listing. Reach for unlist when you only want to pull a listing from the Marketplace; delete when you no longer need the agent at all. See Publishing an Agent.
Where can I get help?
Email support@rival.io for account, billing, or technical questions. Include your organization name, tool ID, input, and exact error message. See the Support page for what to include in a bug report.