Introduction
Lit Actions are still heavily in development and things may change. We're grateful for feedback on how to improve the docs and examples!
To start developing with Lit Actions, check out examples here. For an in-depth review of the functionality provided by the Lit Actions SDK, take a look at our API docs.
Lit Actions are the application logic that a user can ‘add’ to a PKP, this is referred to as programmatic signing.
Specifically, Lit Actions are JavaScript functions that are executed across Lit’s threshold cryptography network. They are JavaScript smart contracts that, when combined with PKPs, can be programmed to sign transactions and other arbitrary data.
Lit Actions are immutable, blockchain agnostic, and can make HTTP requests. This means that they can utilize on-chain and off-chain data in their computation. You can write some code and ask the Lit nodes to execute it, for example asking the network to calculate the difference between two random integers, x and y.
The result of this function can be used to pass some functionality, like signing or provisioning decryption abilities to a user (such as if the difference between x and y is greater than 10, sign the result).
What can I use Lit Actions for?
When used in conjunction with PKPs, Lit Actions facilitate automated signing and decryption of data, functionally combining smart contracts with an individual key-pair.
A toy example would be a Lit Action and corresponding PKP that checks if a number is prime, and only signs it if it is prime. Think of it as a sort of “prime number” certification service. Since the Lit Action is immutable, and since you can permanently assign a PKP to a Lit Action, there is a provable chain of trust. This means you could present the signature and a number to someone, and they could simply check the signature against the public key of the PKP to see if the number is actually prime, instead of having to do all the math to ensure that the number is actually prime. The signature acts as a proof that the number is prime.
Signatures vs. Proofs
It is important to break down the distinction between a "signature" and what can be considered a "proof".
Signing
In cryptography, a digital signature proves that a user controls the private key associated with a particular public address. This is commonly used in the context of authorization. Apps can use this signature to verify a user has control over the digital identity provided by the address, and provide authentication to do both web3 and arbitrary, non-web3 actions. For example, changing a profile on OpenSea requires signing in order to confirm the association between the profile owner and the wallet associated with it.
In working with the Lit network, someone will sign with their wallet when they want to mint a PKP. That is a transaction signature — where someone is sending a transaction (minting). This signature is then used as the method of authentication over the PKP and associated Lit Actions.
Proofs
A proof is a particular application for a digital signature. For example, using a signature to prove that a particular interaction took place.
Signing through Lit Actions opens up the possibilities of verifying information from external sources, such as from a Weather API.
Permissionless Execution and Working With External Smart Contracts
Right now, all Lit Actions have to be executed manually by a user. In order to enable the truly permissionless, "condition-based" execution of Lit Actions, we are working on developing our own native event listening solution.
Currently, you could use something like Tenderly Web3 Actions to listen for an on-chain event and then call a Lit Action as a result.
Do I need a PKP to run a Lit Action?
No, but without it, Lit Actions lose their capabilities of signing and decryption. An Action without a PKP is essentially a JavaScript function that can’t sign or decrypt arbitrary data.
Getting started with Lit Actions
Get started with Lit Actions here.
More examples.