Coinbase Unveils x402 Bazaar to Power AI Agent Micropayments

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U.S.-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (COIN) is taking another step toward bridging artificial intelligence and blockchain payments with the launch of x402 Bazaar, a new discovery layer designed for AI agents.

The move expands on the company’s earlier release of x402, an open-source payment protocol that enables instant stablecoin transactions on any website.

A Marketplace for AI Agents

Coinbase’s new ecosystem is aimed at creating what Erik Reppel, head of engineering at Coinbase Developer Platform, calls a “Google for agents.” The idea is to help AI systems not only make stablecoin-based micropayments but also discover services they might need.

This initiative taps into the emerging concept of agentic commerce — where humans set preferences and requirements, and AI agents handle the actual buying. According to Reppel, the universe of digital goods AI agents require is far broader than human demand.

“Think of it as like paywalls for scrapers,” he explained, describing the challenge as a “pay-per-crawl” model that x402 can help solve.

Payment flow for AI agent framework (Source: Coinbase blog)

Unlocking New Digital Workflows

In a blog post, Coinbase illustrated scenarios where x402 Bazaar could transform how autonomous agents interact with data and digital services. Examples include:

Pulling real-time market data to generate reports
Commissioning unique designs from AI art models
Subscribing to live financial or sports data feeds

Initial listings on the x402 Bazaar include Prixe, a stock price API tailored for AI-generated financial reports, alongside several image and video generation endpoints.

Stablecoins as the Backbone

At the heart of the new system is stablecoin-based micropayments, which allow AI agents to make fast, seamless, and low-cost transactions. Reppel noted that any digital goods or media can be paid for with x402, underscoring its potential to support a wide range of use cases.

As more services join the marketplace, Coinbase expects the possibilities for autonomous workflows and AI-driven commerce to expand significantly.

Author

Steven Walgenbach

Steven's passion for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology began in 2014, inspiring him to immerse himself in the field. He notably secured a top 5 world ranking in robotics. While he initially pursued a computer science degree at the University of Texas at Arlington, he chose to pause his studies after two semesters to take a more hands-on approach in advancing cryptocurrency technology. During this period, he actively worked on multiple patents related to cryptocurrency and blockchain. Additionally, Steven has explored various areas of the financial sector, including banking and financial markets, developing prototypes such as fully autonomous trading bots and intuitive interfaces that streamline blockchain integration, among other innovations.

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