Key highlights:
- Circle’s CEO says billions of AI agents may rely on stablecoins for payments within five years.
- Crypto leaders believe traditional payment systems are ill-suited for automated AI commerce.
- Big Tech and crypto firms are already building competing tools to power AI-driven transactions.
Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle, the company behind the USDC stablecoin said at the World Economic Forum in Davos that billions of AI agents could be using stablecoins for everyday payments within the next three to five years.
Allaire argued that AI agents engaged in continuous economic activity will require a dedicated financial and payment infrastructure. According to him, stablecoins currently offer the only practical solution that can operate at the scale, speed, and automation such systems demand.
Allaire emphasized that stablecoins currently provide the most viable solution for AI agents to conduct automated transactions across platforms and borders.
Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao echoed that view at the same event, suggesting that cryptocurrencies could become the native currency for AI agents. He said such systems would not rely on bank cards or traditional payment terminals, but instead use blockchain-based payments by default.
AI commerce tools are already being built
The shift toward AI-driven payments is already underway. In May, Coinbase’s development team introduced the x402 online payment protocol, which enables AI agents to conduct stablecoin transactions directly over the internet.
The system revives the long-unused HTTP 402 “Payment Required” standard and combines it with Ethereum Improvement Proposal 3009 to automate payments without manual approval or gas fees.
Big Tech enters the AI payments race
More recently, Google unveiled its Universal Commerce Protocol for AI-powered agent commerce. Announced on January 11, the protocol allows AI agents to process payments on behalf of users, with Google Pay handling US dollar transactions. The move positions Google as a potential competitor to crypto-native payment systems designed specifically for AI agents.
As AI technologies become more integrated with financial infrastructure, the way digital payments are processed could change significantly. Stablecoins, which are typically pegged to traditional currencies, offer predictable pricing for automated transactions, while blockchain systems provide programmability and transparency.
The growing competition between cryptocurrency platforms and technology giants highlights the strategic importance of AI-driven commerce.
Whether decentralized solutions or established payment networks will dominate this emerging market may ultimately depend on regulatory clarity as much as technological innovation.
Source:: Circle CEO Predicts Billions of AI Bots Will Pay With Stablecoins