The Internet's Open Source AI Paywall
I built DarkForest Protocol after watching sites get hammered by AI search bots. Robots.txt isn't working. Some sites are using Nepenthes/Quixotic to poison models, but that's a lose-lose approach. DarkForest is an open-source middleware (Express/Next.js/Vite) that lets any site establish clear boundaries with AI systems. One line of code redirects crawlers to a message about respecting content - no poisoning required. This is just the start. The long-term vision is to build: (1) A collective intelligence network where sites share crawler patterns, and (2) An internet scale…
The Internet's Open Source AI Paywall launched on February 21, 2025 with 13 votes, #1,198 of 5,999 launches that month and more than 75% of that year's launches. The site was still online in September 2026, 1 year on.
In plain words
DarkForest Protocol is an open-source middleware for Express, Next.js, and Vite that helps websites manage AI crawler access. Instead of using content poisoning techniques or relying on outdated robots.txt files, it allows sites to redirect AI bots with a single line of code to a message about respecting boundaries. The tool is designed for website owners frustrated with excessive AI scraping and serves as foundation for a planned network where sites can share crawler patterns and eventually participate in an automated marketplace for AI content licensing.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
the internet
In the maker’s words, at launch
I built DarkForest Protocol after watching sites get hammered by AI search bots. Robots.txt isn't working. Some sites are using Nepenthes/Quixotic to poison models, but that's a lose-lose approach. DarkForest is an open-source middleware (Express/Next.js/Vite) that lets any site establish clear…
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