Google has unveiled an open-source protocol that allows AI applications to send and receive payments, including transactions using stablecoins. The initiative, launched in partnership with Salesforce, American Express, and more than 60 other companies, represents a significant step in integrating dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies into AI-driven web infrastructure.
The stablecoin functionality was developed in collaboration with crypto exchange Coinbase, with additional consultation from the Ethereum Foundation. James Tromans, head of Web3 at Google Cloud, confirmed the rollout, stating the protocol was designed to support both existing payment rail capabilities as well as forthcoming capabilities such as stablecoins.
Coinbase engineer Erik Reppel revealed the exchange worked with Google to make their payment systems interoperable, noting "We're all working to figure out how to make AI transmit value to each other." The payment system builds on Google's Agent2Agent Protocol introduced in April, which provides a framework for AI agents to exchange information more efficiently.
The announcement comes amid growing efforts to connect AI agents—autonomous software programs capable of making decisions without human input—with decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. Such integration could streamline trading, improve user interaction, and expand real-world payment use cases.
Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz recently underscored stablecoins' importance in this shift, predicting that AI agents will eventually become "the biggest user of stablecoins." The Ethereum Foundation has also highlighted stablecoins' potential in powering AI-driven applications, noting in August that autonomous agents are about to become Ethereum's biggest power users.