How to choose your integration path
Use this guide to pick a real enforcement boundary: model API gateway, HTTP Action Gateway, MCP proxy/native tool exposure, native Talon runtime, or delegated enforcement through OpenShell. These are different execution surfaces with different guarantees.
Decision table
| Your situation | Talon path | Auth | Where to go next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third-party SaaS (Zendesk AI, Intercom, HubSpot) | MCP proxy at POST /mcp/proxy. Response PII scanning, tools/list filtering (agents only see allowed tools) | Agent key (Authorization: Bearer <agent-key-value>) | Vendor integration guide |
| Your app calls LLM APIs (Slack bot, desktop app, OpenClaw, CoPaw, script) | LLM API gateway at POST /v1/proxy/{provider}/v1/.... Response-path PII scanning, kill switch, tool-aware redaction | Agent key (Authorization: Bearer <agent key>) | OpenClaw, CoPaw, Slack bot, Desktop apps |
| Consequential HTTP business action (refund, publish, mutation) | HTTP Action Gateway (POST /v1/action-operations, /v1/approvals) — immutable exact payload, authenticated reviewer decision and at-most-once Talon-forwarded HTTP attempt | Agent key for the action operation; separate tenant-scoped approver principal for decisions | Action Gateway |
| Contained agent in OpenShell v0.1.3 | OpenShell's HTTP_REQUEST / PRE_CREDENTIALS supervisor middleware delegates model-policy decisions to Talon; OpenShell enforces the verdict | OpenShell-issued gateway-signed extension token verified by Talon | OpenShell integration |
| New agent from scratch | Native Talon (talon run, POST /v1/agents/run, POST /v1/chat/completions) | Agent key (Authorization: Bearer <agent-key-value>) | Your first governed agent, QUICKSTART |
In short
- HTTP Action Gateway — Binds the exact operation identity, normalized payload and trusted destination. The runtime establishes the operation and later claims an attempt; an authorized approver can decide without dispatching it. MCP-discovered action definitions can be catalogued, but MCP execution is not yet wired into this path (#431); the HTTP adapter refuses those definitions.
- OpenShell — The runtime contains the agent, holds credentials and enforces model-traffic decisions returned by Talon's middleware. Talon signs its returned decision as
delegated_expected, not a receipt proving the runtime honored it; provider responses and local containment effects are not observed by Talon. - MCP proxy — Intercepts tool-level MCP traffic from vendors. You point the vendor at Talon; Talon logs, redacts PII (request and response path), enforces policy before forwarding, and filters
tools/listso agents only see allowed tools. Enable withtalon serve --proxy-config <path>. - LLM API gateway — Intercepts request-level LLM API traffic from your own apps. Your app changes only the base URL and presents its agent key; Talon enforces the agent's effective model and cost policy, scans responses for PII (redact/block/warn), supports tool-aware redaction per argument, provides a kill switch (programmatic via
ActiveRunTracker.Kill()), and records evidence. Enable withtalon serve --gateway --gateway-config <path>. - Native Talon — You run agents via
talon runor the REST API. Full policy-as-code, triggers, memory, and audit. No proxy; Talon is the agent runtime.
MCP compatibility: /mcp and /mcp/proxy speak 2026-07-28 only. Older handshakes (initialize) and protocol sessions are not supported. MCP interception does not currently provide Action Gateway's bound-approval/at-most-once execution contract. Policy posture: there is no global shadow/log-only/observe-and-forward runtime mode; active rules are enforced (#442).
You can use both MCP proxy and LLM gateway on the same server (e.g. MCP proxy for Zendesk, gateway for internal Slack bot).
You're done
You now know which Talon path fits your situation (MCP proxy, LLM gateway, or native). Pick the doc from the table above and follow it.
Next steps:
| I want to… | Doc |
|---|---|
| Route my existing app through Talon | Add Talon to your existing app |
| Route OpenClaw or CoPaw through Talon | OpenClaw, CoPaw |
| Wrap a third-party AI vendor (Zendesk, Intercom) | Vendor integration guide |
| Authorize a high-impact HTTP action | Action Gateway |
| Govern a contained OpenShell agent | OpenShell integration |
| Build a new agent from scratch | Your first agent with Talon |