Web3 Adapter

Design document, not shipped code. adapters/web2, adapters/web3 and adapters/legacy each contain a single doc comment and no implementation. Nothing on this page can be configured or run today.What does exist is the contract they will implement: the Adapter trait in ntl-core (spec/adapter-contract) is real, normative and tested. This page describes the intended behaviour on top of it, and the configuration keys below are proposed rather than parsed — no [adapter.*] table is read by any binary.Tracking: openNTL/ntl#14.

The Web3 adapter enables NTL signals to interact with blockchain networks, decentralized identity systems, and token mechanisms. NTL is Web3-compliant without being Web3-dependent — the protocol itself doesn’t require any chain, but it can seamlessly interface with them.

Capabilities

Feature	Description
Chain Interaction	Emit signals that trigger on-chain transactions
DID Verification	Verify node identity through decentralized identifiers
Token Payloads	Signals can carry tokenized value
Event Listening	Chain events become NTL signals
Multi-chain	Chain-agnostic interface

Architecture

NTL Signal ──▶ Web3 Adapter ──▶ Chain TX / DID Verification / Token Transfer
                    │
                    ▼
             Chain Event ──▶ NTL Signal (back into the network)

Decentralized Identity (DID)

NTL nodes can optionally anchor their identity to a DID:

NodeIdentity {
    ntl_id: NodeId,                    // NTL-native identity
    did: Option<Did>,                  // DID anchor (optional)
    verification_methods: Vec<Method>, // How to verify this node
}

When a node presents a DID-anchored identity, other nodes can verify it through the Web3 adapter without trusting a central authority.

Chain Event → Signal Translation

The Web3 adapter listens for on-chain events and translates them into NTL signals:

// Smart contract emits an event
event Transfer(address from, address to, uint256 amount);

// Web3 adapter creates an NTL signal
Signal {
    signal_type: Event,
    payload: { from, to, amount },
    tags: ["chain", "transfer", "ethereum"],
    weight: 0.8,
}

Configuration

[adapter.web3]
enabled = true

[adapter.web3.chains]
ethereum = { rpc = "https://...", chain_id = 1 }
polygon = { rpc = "https://...", chain_id = 137 }

[adapter.web3.did]
enabled = true
methods = ["did:key", "did:web", "did:ethr"]

[adapter.web3.tokens]
enabled = true

Crypto Agnosticism

Critically, the Web3 adapter’s chain interactions use whatever cryptographic schemes those chains require, but this doesn’t affect NTL’s core transport. The adapter handles the translation between NTL’s pluggable crypto module and chain-specific cryptography. If a chain’s crypto is broken by quantum, you update the adapter — not the protocol.

Last modified on September 11, 2026

Introduction

Core Concepts

Guides

Adapters

Security

Governance

Capabilities

Architecture

Decentralized Identity (DID)

Chain Event → Signal Translation

Configuration

Crypto Agnosticism

​Capabilities

​Architecture

​Decentralized Identity (DID)

​Chain Event → Signal Translation

​Configuration

​Crypto Agnosticism

Capabilities

Architecture

Decentralized Identity (DID)

Chain Event → Signal Translation

Configuration

Crypto Agnosticism