Crypto exchange Coinbase is partnering with technology security firm Cloudflare to launch x402 Foundation, an entity that will champion the adoption of artificial intelligence-driven payments.
Summary
- Coinbase and Cloudflare’s x402 Foundation is aiming to make AI-powered payments as seamless as sending an email.
- The x402 protocol creates a universal framework for real-time, stablecoin-based transactions—enabling everything from creator micropayments and pay-per-use AI services to agent-to-agent commerce.
- By embedding payments directly into the web, the protocol lets AI agents, businesses, and apps transact autonomously, unlocking a new frontier where blockchain meets intelligent, automated commerce at scale.
Coinbase and Cloudflare revealed their partnership on Tuesday, Sept. 23, noting that the establishment of the x402 Foundation aims to promote the AI-powered payments system via the x402 protocol.
The x402 is a framework that enables users and businesses to exchange value on the web via a common language, the companies said in an announcement.
According to Dan Kim, vice president of business development and listings at Coinbase, the mission of x402 Foundation is to drive a new era in payments. The protocol will be the standard for AI payments, allowing for accelerated growth of the agentic commerce ecosystem.
By having payments embedded directly into the web, the x402 protocol allows for autonomous transfers and payments between AI agents, businesses, and apps.
A new era for payments
x402 eyes automated and scalable blockchain payments powered by AI. Use cases include pay-per-use AI and research, creator micropayments, storage and media and agent-to-agent payments.
The foundation will focus on scaling the protocol for these milestones, with initiatives around developer grants, resources and interoperability.
“With the x402 Foundation, we’re laying the groundwork for a future where AI agents can autonomously transact, creating entirely new workflows and business models,” Kim noted.
Cloudflare stated in a separate update that users can leverage x402 to monetize traditional use cases.
However, the protocol also allows for monetization of novel use cases, including efforts such as AI assistants that can buy from multiple merchants, an AI agent that can pay for each browser rendering session, or an autonomous stock trader that can leverage micropayments. These are some of the new trends that benefit from “programmatic access to resources.”
“Clients and servers capable of interpreting the x402 protocol are able to transact without the need for accounts, subscriptions, or API keys,” the Cloudflare team added.