LoopcardCompetitive landscape — 18 September 2026
If the homepage, SDK, or pricing looks like any row below, the pivot is already dead.
Closed categories
| Category | Who owns it | Floor | Why we lose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Write code with an agent | Cursor, Claude Code, Copilot, Devin, Kilo, Windsurf | $10–$20 | We are not a model lab or Anysphere |
| Inbox / meetings teammate | Lindy, ChatGPT connectors | $29.99 | Integration surface, not 1-VPS |
| LLM traces / evals | Langfuse $29 / MIT $0, LangSmith $39/seat, Phoenix $0 | $0–$39 | 89% of surveyed builders already have observability |
| OpenAI-compatible proxy | LiteLLM OSS, Portkey $49, Helicone (maintenance mode after Mintlify, 3 Mar 2026) | $0 | Key custody + OSS default |
| MCP gateway | Permit.io *.agent.security (Community free, Pro from $25), Portkey, Obot, Docker MCP, Preloop |
$0 | Drop-in URL already exists |
| Agent SSO | Okta Agent SSO $0 extra (GA 24 Aug 2026), Microsoft Entra / Agent 365 | $0 | Enterprise identity |
| MCP scanner / blast card | CodeFlowOps free 30s, mcp-scan / Snyk Agent Scan OSS, Golf scanner, ShieldMCP $49 PDF, MCP Observatory $29 + $15k pilot | $0 | SSL Labs economics |
| Signed receipts | Obsigna / Agent Receipts protocol (~20 stars), ProofAgent, IETF drafts | $0 | Protocols, not a habit |
| Quantum classroom / QCaaS | IBM Composer + Classroom Accounts (free real QPUs), AWS Braket, Azure | $0 | Hardware we do not have |
| Support agent | Intercom Fin, Sierra, Decagon, Zendesk | usage / sales | Forbidden clone band |
| Demo / AE agent | Naoma from $249/mo | $249 | Out of band + crowded |
| Auth + billing for AI builders | tiun (PH #1 Sep 2026), Stripe, Clerk, Creem/Paddle | — | Legal kill if we hold funds |
Permit.io specifically (the clone that killed Hallpass)
Opened: permit.io MCP Gateway pricing and docs, 18 Sep 2026.
- Drop-in
https://<host>.agent.security/mcp?upstream_mcp=... - “Under 5 minutes.”
- Allow/deny, consent, audit, Cursor/Claude snippets.
- Community free; Pro $25 starting/month.
- Product Hunt launch ~18 Mar 2026: #8, 138 upvotes.
- Own Show HN: 2 points.
“We also have English rules and a pretty receipt” is a feature checklist, not a company.
Helicone is not a hole
Helicone + Mintlify both say maintenance mode as of 3 Mar 2026. Product still live. That is a migration pool, not a vacancy for a new proxy on this VPS.
Implications for marketing copy
Never compare ourselves to Cursor on quality. Never say “the only MCP gateway.” Never say “like Langfuse but simpler.” Never use customer logos we do not have (MCP Observatory-style “used by developers at Accenture” is a pattern we will not copy unless true).
If a later GO is an application (does the work), the competitors are the $9–$49 agents in that vertical plus ChatGPT — write that comparison then, not now.