MasterCard is working with several big names in Microsoft and AI to change the way online shopping works. The company has announced that it will be called “Agent Pay,” a new initiative that will allow AI agents to make purchases on behalf of customers and process payments.
The idea is not theoretical. It’s already moving. MasterCard said the program uses what is called agent payment technology. Essentially, let a trusted AI agent act like a digital assistant who can shop, compare prices, and check you out. There are no more abandoned carts. No more last minute, “Do I really need this?” moment. Just tell AI what you want and we’ll handle the rest.
MasterCard launches Agent Pay to power AI-driven commerce
MasterCard works with Microsoft and other top AI companies to force AI agents to shop for consumers and pay for them.
As part of the new program, shoppers can ask AI assistants like Microsoft’s Copilot to find specific items, such as a pair of yellow running shoes of size. AI searches options, recommends the best picks, and even suggests the most efficient payment methods in the process, to complete a purchase.
“Under the new program, shoppers can encourage AI agents (for example, Microsoft co-pilots) to search for yellow running shoes of a specific size. Agents can search and offer customer options and purchase while recommending the best method,” reported Bloomberg.
AI agents shopping for you
MasterCard’s Agent Pay is intended to reconstruct how commercial transactions occur through AI. The platform utilizes Agent AI to create faster, safer, and more personalized payment experiences for consumers, merchants and publishers.
Agent payments are actually made
At the heart of Agent Pay is an AI-powered system that allows you to follow instructions, scan and trade online stores while maintaining data protection. Agents rely on tokenization, replacing actual payment information with a unique digital ID. Therefore, even if a transaction passes through multiple platforms, sensitive data remains hidden.
This is based on MasterCard’s work in AI fraud detection. According to a CNBC report earlier this year, its AI system, Decision Intelligence Pro, helped banks detect up to three times more fraud. Agent Pay takes this a step further by reviewing the AI agents themselves and excluding those who raise the red flag.
And MasterCard doesn’t go all alone. Microsoft, which has put $80 billion into AI infrastructure this fiscal year, will help support Tech Backbone. IBM is also participating, bringing AI tools and security chops to the table.
“We’re committed to providing a range of services to our customers,” said Jorn Lambert, Chief Product Officer at MasterCard. “The launch of MasterCard Agent is the first step in redefineing commerce in the AI era, and we are eager to recognize the earthquake impact of this evolution, including a new merchant interface to distinguish trustworthy agents from bad actors using agent technology, and work with industry players to work with agent players, such as acquiring agent protocols, such as promoting agent standards and selling model content, Agent Commerce.”
What it means for consumers
Let’s say you’re in the market for a new laptop. Instead of comparing specifications, checking reviews, or clicking on 12 sites, you can provide AI agents with a list of preferences (budget, performance, preferred brands). You can also complete your purchase without lifting another finger.
The promise here is speed and ease. These AI agents can learn about your habits, remember your preferences, and provide better results every time. Do you want to shop only from environmentally friendly brands? Or would you rule out more than $500? Agents will take that into consideration.
What does that mean for merchants?
For online sellers, agent payments can mean less cart abandonment and smoother checkout. When an AI agent is processing a transaction, the friction that usually causes buyer drop-off will disappear. Additionally, MasterCard’s fraud system adds a layer of seller protection by quickly analyzing more than 143 billion transactions per year.
But that’s not all an advantage. There are still big questions about how much control people will hand over to AI agents. MasterCard says it sticks to strict data and AI governance policies, but the idea that bots shop for you raises concerns about security, privacy and the power these agents really should have.
This fits the whole picture
This is not just a Mastercard experiment. Visa is doing the same thing, rolling out its own large-scale language model across its products to help it handle roughly 280 billion transactions per year. Tech giants like Meta, Amazon and Microsoft are spending tens of millions of people on AI infrastructure.
MasterCard alone has invested over $7 billion in cybersecurity and AI over the past five years with MasterCard alone, and trained the system with 125 billion transactions per year to catch fraud more accurately. This gives them a head start as AI-controlled payment ideas move from fringes to mainstream.
What’s coming next
There’s still a long way to go. To deploy this globally means syncing with a variety of payment platforms, complying with local regulations and keeping your technology safe from bad actors. Having everyday users and businesses trust these systems is just as important as building them.
Another: Ethical AI is important here. MasterCard says the focus is on ensuring that the data used by these agents leads to biased or incorrect decisions. That’s important as these tools begin to make more financial decisions on behalf of users.
In short, Agent Pay can rebuild online commerce if the consumer gets an idea and if the infrastructure is posted.
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