Alchemy and Visa launch AgentCard: AI agents get their own payment tools
The cryptocurrency and blockchain technology market continues to evolve, and this time we are witnessing a landmark event at the intersection of artificial intelligence and finance. The Alchemy platform, together with payment giant Visa, has introduced the AgentCard service. This solution fundamentally changes the rules of the game: AI agents can now independently make online purchases on behalf of users, without the need for direct human involvement in every transaction.
The essence of the innovation lies in its integration with the Visa Intelligent Commerce infrastructure. Thanks to this, neural networks receive a full set of digital identification data: a virtual Visa card, an email address, a phone number, and, crucially for the crypto community, a cryptocurrency wallet. Developers only need to configure a single API, and the agent's access to paying for goods and services is set up in literally minutes.
Imagine an AI agent based on models from OpenAI or Anthropic that can independently book airline tickets, order groceries, or renew subscriptions. The user no longer needs to sit and manually process each purchase — the agent does it for them, saving time and resources.
The system is designed with security and control in mind: it supports spending limits, restrictions by store categories, and customizable budgets. By default, payments are processed via Visa tokens, allowing users to retain bank bonuses and credit lines. However, if the merchant accepts digital assets, the service flexibly switches to using a crypto wallet, automatically choosing the optimal payment method.
This is not the first step in this direction. Previously, we saw the announcement of a wallet for the era of autonomous AI from the MetaMask team, as well as the Coinbase service connecting AI agents to user accounts for trading and payments. However, the partnership between Alchemy and Visa looks particularly significant, given the scale and trust in Visa's payment infrastructure.
My analysis: AgentCard is not just another tool, but a fundamental shift in the economy. AI agents are becoming full-fledged economic participants, and providing them with their own payment means is a logical and inevitable stage. For the crypto industry, this opens up new horizons: agents will be able to interact with DeFi protocols, manage NFTs, and conduct microtransactions autonomously. However, the key challenge remains security and control — how to ensure that the agent does not exceed its authority? The introduction of customizable limits and budgets is a correct first step, but the industry will need to develop more complex trust mechanisms.