Google's AI Agent Payments Protocol (ap2)
Posted4 months agoActive3 months ago
cloud.google.comTechstory
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AIPaymentsProtocol
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Google announced Agent Payments Protocol (AP2), an open payments protocol for AI agents, sparking discussion on its potential impact on personal budgeting and financial management.
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Sep 16, 2025 at 10:36 AM EDT
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Google just announced Agent Payments Protocol (AP2): standard meant to let AI agents securely transact across cards, bank transfers & even stablecoins. It uses cryptographically-signed “mandates” to prove intent & create an auditable trail from request → cart → payment.
Apparently 60+ partners on board (Amex, PayPal, Mastercard, Coinbase, etc.).
Google frames this as the foundation of “agentic commerce.”
Is it possible that w/i 6 months an agent-to-agent transaction for a large sum will go wrong, exposing the accountability gaps AP2 is meant to solve?
Is AP2 the missing trust layer for autonomous commerce, or just the start of a messy collision btw agents, payments standards & liability?