Mastercard announced that it had completed end-to-end pilots of Agent Pay for Machines and opened early developer access. In a demonstration, an AI agent made nine payments for research and image generation after its operator approved a budget. The system lets agents buy digital services without further human intervention, but only within spending limits set by their operators.
Payments use digitally signed vouchers that providers verify before delivering a service. Transactions are authorized offchain, while providers can redeem vouchers later. The source says broader adoption depends on developers integrating the system and businesses trusting agents to manage spending.
