Jesse Pollak of Coinbase Foresees AI Agents Revolutionizing Crypto Payments

The swift emergence of AI agents is transforming the online payment landscape, with crypto infrastructure poised to become a key component, according to Jesse Pollak of Coinbase. In an interview with CoinDesk, Pollak noted that what was nearly impossible just nine months ago is now feasible, thanks to the rapidly advancing capabilities of autonomous AI systems. As these agents continue to evolve, the need for native transaction methods is becoming increasingly apparent. Pollak explained that since agents are defined by software and operate using software, they require monetary transactions that are also software-based. He will be discussing this topic further at Consensus Miami 2026 next month. This shift is driving interest in "agentic payments," where AI systems can autonomously pay for services such as data access, computing power, or travel bookings. Pollak expressed his hope that the x402 open-source payments protocol, developed by Coinbase and collaborators like Microsoft, Google, and Mastercard, will be a crucial part of this ecosystem. The protocol enables on-demand API payments without the need for subscriptions or traditional billing systems. Unlike traditional payment methods, blockchain-based payments allow agents to make a single API call or smart contract call, facilitating instant global transactions at virtually no cost, according to Pollak. There is already evidence of early traction, with approximately $48 million in payment volume having flowed through X402 to date, and around 95% of these transactions taking place on Base, the Ethereum layer-2 network founded by Pollak and incubated by Coinbase. The ecosystem is expanding rapidly, with integrations spanning AI providers, data platforms, and travel services that agents can access directly. Pollak's long-term vision is to create an open marketplace where agents can programmatically access services without encountering paywalls or requiring human intervention. He described a system where software can seamlessly discover, purchase, and use digital services in real-time. While fully autonomous "zero-human" businesses are beginning to emerge, Pollak believes that the more significant near-term change will come from people using AI to augment their capabilities. He noted that top performers are now using agents to further enhance their performance, describing workflows powered by multiple parallel AI systems. For the crypto industry, the broader challenge remains adoption. Pollak argued that the solution lies not in better marketing, but in making crypto invisible to the user. He stated that it will be easier to promote crypto when people do not need to be aware of it, they simply experience it.