How trading works
The agent can trade in two ways:
| Normal mode | Auto mode (experimental) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who approves each trade | You, in your wallet | The agent, within your limits |
| Which wallet | Your own wallet | A separate agent wallet you fund |
| Keys | Stay in your wallet | Held in secure key-management infrastructure |
| Availability | Everyone with access | Early access |
This page covers normal mode. See Auto mode for how automated trading works.
Normal mode, step by step
- You ask. For example: "Swap 0.5 SOL for USDC" or "Sell half my BONK".
- The agent checks. It confirms which tokens you mean (many tokens share a ticker), checks your balance, and gets a live quote from Jupiter, Solana's main swap aggregator.
- You get a trade card showing the amount in, the estimated amount out, max slippage, price impact, and the platform fee.
- You press "Review & sign." We fetch a fresh quote and your wallet opens with the exact transaction.
- You approve or reject in your wallet. If you approve, the swap is submitted and you get a Solscan link.
In normal mode, the agent can't:
- Move funds without your signature
- See or store your seed phrase or private keys
- Guarantee the price. Markets move between the quote and your signature. Slippage limits protect you: if the price moves past your limit, the swap fails instead of filling at a bad price.
Slippage and price impact
- Slippage is the most the price can move against you before the swap cancels. The default is 1%.
- Price impact is how much your own trade moves the price. High impact (2% or more) means the pool is thin for your trade size. Consider a smaller trade.
Fees
- Platform fee: 0.5% on swaps made through the agent. It's shown on the trade card and funds $SIDEKICK buybacks. See Fees & buybacks.
- Network fees: normal Solana transaction fees, usually a fraction of a cent.