Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) has introduced Trusted Agent Protocol, forming a foundational framework for agentic commerce that allows for more secure communication between AI agents and merchants. Trusted Agent Protocol aims to address the challenges facing agent-driven commerce, ushering in an era where AI is able to effectively search, compare and even make payments on behalf of consumers.
With the launch of this protocol, developed in partnership with Cloudflare, Visa says that it now reinforces its commitment to supporting frictionless interactions in the evolving ecosystem of intelligent payments.
Trusted Agent Protocol is available in the Visa Developer Center and GitHub.
During the last year, AI-powered traffic to retail websites in the United States surged more than 4,700%, and 85% of consumers who have used AI to shop say it enhanced their experience.
The Trusted Agent Protocol aims to address these challenges by enabling approved agents to securely pass critical details to merchants.
As explained in the update from Visa, this provides a framework for recognizing trusted agents with commerce intent and distinguishes them “from malicious automation and rogue bots.”
In developing this protocol, they have received feedback from other partners, including Adyen, Ant International, Checkout.com, Coinbase, CyberSource, Elavon, Fiserv, Microsoft, Nuvei, Shopify, Stripe, and Worldpay.
Jack Forestell, Chief Product & Strategy Officer, Visa, said that for the past year, they’ve worked with sellers, issuers, and partners to make sure agent-initiated transactions are as “secure as any payment today.”
Their agent protocol is focused on creating no-code functionality for merchants to identify agents with an “intent to buy and provide a better payments and personalized experience for its known users.”
In an agentic environment, merchants require a way to recognize trusted agents, verify their credentials, and “maintain customer relationships without overhauling their systems.”
Trusted Agent Protocol addresses these challenges with “specifications that use agent-specific cryptographic signatures” and includes the following information:
- Agent Intent – An indication that the agent is a trusted agent with an intent to retrieve additional details about, or purchase, a specific product from a merchant.
- Consumer Recognition – Data elements that indicate whether a consumer has an existing account or has previously interacted with the merchant.
- Payment Information – Agents have the option to carry payment data to support a merchant’s preferred checkout or payment method.
Built for the Future of Commerce Interoperability