Mastercard Is Giving AI Agents Virtual Cards to Handle Your Shopping

Mastercard said it is preparing to unveil an agentic payments option later this week, partnering with Alchemy, a startup that builds virtual cards for AI agents to use in e-commerce. Alchemy says the “checkout button is dying” as AI agents can discover, compare, and buy products on behalf of users within preset limits such as price range. Cardholders will authorize agents in advance to handle tasks like ordering food or booking travel. Developers can set up “AgentCard” through a single command-line interface, using tools including a dedicated email address, phone number, a stablecoin wallet, and one-time-use Mastercard credentials. Mastercard’s Greg Ulrich noted that fraud systems designed to stop bots must be adjusted to allow transactions. The move follows recent efforts by Mastercard, Visa, and Ant International to develop standards for verifying trusted AI agents, amid ongoing safety concerns.