Coinbase is reviving the long-neglected HTTP 402 ‘Payment Required’ protocol to establish an autonomous payments layer that eliminates the need for human intervention.
The new x402 protocol transforms this 402 status code into a functional payment mechanism, allowing any server to request payments. Clients—whether human or automated—can respond with digital currencies like stablecoins, including USDC.
Traditional payment methods, such as credit cards and bank transfers, were designed for a pre-internet world and are fraught with manual processes, making it challenging for AI agents to operate independently. Coinbase states, “By enabling the API and context providers to monetize without needing human configuration, x402 removes a key bottleneck to agentic autonomy.” This means agents can now make payments per API call, streamlining the process and eliminating the need for managing payments with each integration.
Erik Reppel, head of engineering at Coinbase Developer Platform, emphasizes, “We’re laying the groundwork for an economy run not just by people, but by software—autonomous, intelligent, and always on.”
Coinbase is part of a broader trend, with companies like Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, and PayPal also exploring ways to develop an autonomous payment layer for agentic commerce, capitalizing on the increasing role of AI in transactions.