> Full Neon documentation index: https://neon.com/docs/llms.txt

> Summary: Covers how agent platforms build on Neon: Lakebase Postgres plus Auth, Object Storage, Functions, Data API, and AI Gateway. Instant provisioning, lakebase architecture scale-to-zero, branching, and API-first fleet control for full-stack agent backends.

# Neon for AI Agent Platforms

Build full-stack agents on Lakebase Postgres and Neon backend primitives

[Apply for the Agent Plan](https://neon.com/use-cases/ai-agents)

**[Learn more about the Neon Agent Plan](https://neon.com/programs/agents#agent-plan-pricing)**

> The combination of flexible resource limits and nearly instant database provisioning made Neon a no-brainer.
>
> — Lincoln Bergeson, Infrastructure Engineer at Replit

## The Neon stack for agents

Neon is a complete set of cloud backend primitives built around Lakebase Postgres, for developers, startups, and agent platforms, from Databricks. The lakebase architecture aligns with how agents work:

**Lakebase Postgres at the core.**
Agents get a serverless Postgres engine built on separated compute and storage. It provisions instantly, scales automatically, and idles to zero when not in use - a fit for the bursty, on-demand workloads that agents create.

**With composable primitives for full-stack backends.**
Around Lakebase Postgres, Neon includes [Managed Better Auth](https://neon.com/docs/auth/overview), a PostgREST-compatible [Neon Data API](https://neon.com/docs/data-api/get-started), [Neon Object Storage](https://neon.com/docs/storage/overview), [Neon Functions](https://neon.com/docs/compute/functions/overview), and a [Neon AI Gateway](https://neon.com/docs/ai-gateway/overview). Agents and developers can assemble complete backends without stitching multiple vendors together, and adopt only the pieces each generated app needs.

**All API-first and programmable.**
Every capability - provisioning, quotas, branching, and fleet management - is exposed through the Neon API, giving developers and agents precise control over their environments and usage at scale.

**And version-aware by design.**
Copy-on-write storage in the lakebase architecture makes time travel cheap. Branching, snapshots, and point-in-time recovery enable undo, checkpoints, and safe experimentation across millions of databases.

## Lakebase Postgres

At the core of Neon is [Lakebase Postgres](https://neon.com/docs/postgres/overview), built on the [lakebase architecture](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/architecture-overview): compute separated from storage. Each database runs on ephemeral computes while the data itself lives on durable, high-performance storage. That is what agents provision for every generated app, and what every other Neon primitive is built around.

### API-first and serverless

**This architecture makes it possible for agents to provision databases instantly on demand, operate them at massive scale, and still keep costs under control.** Tens of thousands of projects can spin up and idle as users create apps, all programmatically, without intervention from you.

**Tested at scale** A popular developer platform managed over 300k Postgres instances on Neon with only a single engineer. That's how simple and efficient it is.  [Learn more](https://neon.com/blog/how-retool-uses-retool-and-the-neon-api-to-manage-300k-postgres-databases)

### Instant autoscaling and scale-to-zero

Traditional database management falls apart when every agent action can trigger new infrastructure. Lakebase Postgres handles this complexity automatically:

- [Compute scales up and down in real time based on workload](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/autoscaling)
- [Scale-to-zero ensures that idle databases cost you nothing](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/scale-to-zero) while remaining instantly accessible

This combination gives agent builders a sustainable model for large fleets: **you can create thousands of databases without worrying about resource exhaustion or runaway bills.**

> The speed of provisioning and serverless scale-to-zero of Neon is critical for us
>
> — Dhruv Amin, Co-founder at Anything

### Checkpoints with snapshots and branching

**Vibe coders experiment constantly, going back and forward between versions - and sometimes breaking things. Neon's [branching](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/branching) and [snapshots API](https://neon.com/docs/ai/ai-database-versioning) turn this into a feature, not a risk.**

Branching, built on copy-on-write storage in the lakebase architecture, enables [instant point-in-time recovery](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/branch-restore) for any database. Developers and agents can migrate schemas or revert mistakes without complex restores.

The Snapshots API builds on this foundation to create [agent-friendly, restorable checkpoints](https://neon.com/blog/checkpoints-for-agents-with-neon-snapshots). Agents can capture a moment-in-time version of the database (schema and data) and later roll back or compare states.

## Managed Better Auth

Every app needs authentication, and agents shouldn't have to reinvent it. **[Managed Better Auth](https://neon.com/docs/auth/overview) lets you build secure, multi-tenant systems [without extra glue code](https://neon.com/blog/databutton-neon-integration)**.

It issues JWTs that your agent or front-end can use directly in database queries or through the [Neon Data API](https://neon.com/docs/data-api/get-started). Each token maps to a Postgres role, enforcing granular access at the data level. And because Managed Better Auth supports standard JWKS configuration, you can also plug in external providers. Auth state lives in Postgres and branches with the database, so preview and agent environments get isolated users and sessions without touching production.

> Our AI agent can now create, manage, and debug the entire stack, not just code.
>
> — Martin Skow Røed, CTO and co-founder of Databutton

## Neon Data API

Giving your agents direct access to the database is simple with the [Neon Data API](https://neon.com/docs/data-api/get-started). It exposes each database (and every branch) as a REST endpoint you can query over HTTPS. Fully PostgREST-compatible.

Under the hood, Neon's Data API is a [Rust-based re-implementation of PostgREST that runs natively in our proxy fleet](https://neon.com/blog/a-postgrest-compatible-data-api-now-on-neon). It's lean, multi-tenant, and designed to scale across thousands of databases efficiently. Every Neon branch has its own API endpoint, perfect for preview environments, checkpoints, or dev branches.

## Neon Object Storage

Generated apps need files: uploads, attachments, generated assets. **[Neon Object Storage](https://neon.com/docs/storage/overview)** is S3-compatible object storage built into the Neon backend, so agents don't provision a separate bucket vendor per app.

Each branch gets its own isolated storage namespace. Agents can use any AWS S3-compatible SDK, point it at the branch endpoint, and authenticate with a Neon credential. Preview and agent branches can test uploads and deletions without touching production objects. Storage follows the same project and branch lifecycle as Lakebase Postgres.

## Neon Functions

Agents often need long-running backend code next to the data: APIs, tool-calling loops, webhooks, streaming handlers. **[Neon Functions](https://neon.com/docs/compute/functions/overview)** deploy serverless Node.js compute onto a Neon branch, in the same region as the database, with `DATABASE_URL` (and credentials for Object Storage and AI Gateway) injected automatically.

Unlike short-lived lambdas, Functions can start responding within 15 minutes and keep streaming while work continues, which fits agent and WebSocket workloads. Each branch runs its own function at its own URL against its own database state, so generated apps stay isolated end to end.

## Neon AI Gateway

Many generated apps call LLMs. **[Neon AI Gateway](https://neon.com/docs/ai-gateway/overview)** gives each project one credential for frontier and open-source models across providers, without standing up separate provider accounts per end user.

Standard AI SDKs work with little or no code change: point them at the branch gateway endpoint. Each branch gets its own gateway endpoint, so agent previews and production stay separated. Combined with Functions, agents can run model-backed backends next to Lakebase Postgres without wiring a third-party AI stack into every generated app.

## Quotas, fleet control, and dedicated pricing

**We've been backing agent platforms since the start, and our API has evolved to support the needs of large fleets operated by small engineering teams.** [The Neon API lets you manage not only infra but also setting quotas, tracking compute/storage usage per project, billing limits, and much more](https://neon.com/blog/provision-postgres-neon-api).

Combined with usage-based pricing and agent-specific plans, it gives platform builders fine-grained control over cost, scale, and growth.

**Pricing designed for agent platforms** We know what it takes to scale agent platforms. The Agent Plan gives you everything you need, from early launch to millions of active databases. [Learn more](https://neon.com/programs/agents)

## Documentation & case studies to get started

To get inspired, explore how others are building and scaling their agents on top of Neon:

- [Replit](https://neon.com/blog/replit-app-history-powered-by-neon-branches)
- [Retool](https://neon.com/blog/retool-becomes-the-platform-for-enterprise-appgen)
- [Anything](https://neon.com/blog/from-idea-to-full-stack-app-in-one-conversation-with-create)
- [Databutton](https://neon.com/blog/databutton-neon-integration)
- [Vapi](https://neon.com/blog/vapi-voice-agents-neon)
- [Dyad](https://neon.com/blog/dyad-brings-postgres-to-local-ai-app-building-powered-by-neon)
- [xpander.ai](https://neon.com/blog/xpander-ai-agents-slack-neon-backend)

For instructions on using the Neon API to provision and manage backends on behalf of your users, see [Neon for Platforms Documentation](https://neon.com/docs/guides/platform-integration-intro).

To learn more about the Agent Plan, [see the details on this page](https://neon.com/programs/agents#agent-plan-pricing) or [fill out the application form directly, at the top of this page](https://neon.com/use-cases/ai-agents#agent-form).

> **Prefer a claimable flow?**
>
> You can also allow your end-users to deploy a Neon database in seconds, use it immediately via connection string, claim it later.
>
> [Explore this route](https://neon.new/)

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