084. ERC-7710 - Fine-Grained Permission Delegation Standard
Basic Information
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Standard Name | ERC-7710: Smart Contract Delegation |
| Type | Ethereum Improvement Proposal (ERC Standard) |
| Status | Draft/Experimental Phase |
| Companion Standard | ERC-7715 (Permission Approval Interface) |
| Main Proponents | MetaMask / Consensys |
| Applicable Scope | Ethereum and EVM-Compatible Chains |
Product Description
ERC-7710 defines the minimal interface required for delegating capabilities between smart contracts. This standard separates account ownership from account execution—delegators retain ownership of assets or logic but can transfer specific powers to other entities, either temporarily or permanently, without relinquishing full control. In the OpenClaw ecosystem, ERC-7710 is a critical permission management standard for enabling AI agents to securely execute on-chain operations.
Core Features/Characteristics
- Capability Delegation: Smart contracts can delegate specific capabilities to other smart contracts, smart contract accounts, or externally owned accounts (EOAs).
- Separation of Ownership and Execution: Delegators retain asset ownership while granting specific execution permissions.
- Conditional Restrictions:
- Spending limits
- Time limits
- Task-specific permissions
- Long-Term Sessions: Create persistent dApp sessions with a single signature.
- AI Agent Authorization: Grant bounded permissions to AI agents or automated systems.
- Shareable Invitation Links: Create shareable permission links with specific capabilities.
- Core Architecture:
- Delegator: Smart contracts that can create delegations.
- Delegation Manager: Validates delegation permissions and invokes the delegator to execute actions.
- Compatibility with ERC-4337: Fully compatible with the account abstraction standard.
Business Model
- ERC-7710 is an open standard, free to use.
- MetaMask commercializes this standard through the Delegation Toolkit.
- Services and tools built around permission management can generate commercial value.
Target Users
- Wallet developers (especially within the MetaMask ecosystem).
- AI agent platform developers.
- DApp developers requiring session management.
- Smart contract applications needing fine-grained permission control.
Competitive Advantages
- Native MetaMask Support: Led and integrated by the MetaMask team.
- Security Design: Fundamentally addresses the issue of private key exposure for AI agents.
- Flexibility: Supports everything from simple token approvals to complex multi-step strategies.
- ERC-4337 Synergy: Perfectly complements the account abstraction standard.
Market Performance
- Currently in the experimental phase, integrated into MetaMask Smart Accounts Kit.
- CoinFello's OpenClaw skill is one of the first practical applications of this standard.
- Gaining significant attention in the AI agent security space.
- The companion ERC-7715 standard simplifies permission approval processes in wallets.
Relationship with the OpenClaw Ecosystem
ERC-7710 is the core security mechanism for OpenClaw agents to securely execute blockchain transactions. In the collaboration between CoinFello and MetaMask, ERC-7710 enables Moltbots to grant narrowly defined delegation permissions to other agents (e.g., CoinFello). This means AI agents can perform specific on-chain operations (e.g., token swaps, lending) on behalf of users without accessing their private keys. The combination of ERC-7710 and ERC-4337 provides the OpenClaw ecosystem with a complete security stack of "account abstraction + permission delegation," forming the technical foundation for a trusted AI agent economy.