Mastercard launches AI shopping agent

Mastercard rolled out a payment option that lets people give an AI agent a virtual card to buy things online without approval for each purchase. Cardholders can set spending limits and restrict which retailers the bot uses.

“This is a land grab for infrastructure standards.”

Visa and Meta also building AI commerce

Visa partnered with Alchemy and launched Visa Intelligent Commerce for AI shopping. Meta's Muse can search products and navigate checkout but requires user approval before purchase.

Only 7% of shoppers trust AI to buy

Just 7% of U.S. and U.K. fashion shoppers surveyed said they would let an AI assistant make purchases without approval. More than half were uncomfortable with AI spending their money.

Shoppers prefer price alerts over autonomy

35% of shoppers valued price-drop alerts and retailer comparisons from AI. Only 18% wanted personalized product suggestions, and just 7% wanted autonomous purchasing.

Mastercard adds digital record for disputes

Mastercard developed Verifiable Intent, a digital paper trail showing who authorized the AI agent and what it was allowed to buy. The company says this could help resolve disputes if something goes wrong.

Who pays if the bot makes a mistake?

Mastercard has not specified who bears responsibility if an AI agent makes an unauthorized or fraudulent purchase outside the cardholder's instructions. The liability question remains unresolved.

“We want to be the ones to make that final click.”