Artificial intelligence agents are now transacting directly on blockchain networks, executing more than 138 million transactions through the x402 protocol on Coinbase's Base blockchain to purchase data, computing power, and access to AI models, according to research from Chainalysis.
The United States dominates this emerging market for AI-agent payments. U.S.-linked wallets accounted for 88.1% of geographically identified payments for AI model inference, vastly outpacing China's 0.1% share, Chainalysis found. One possible explanation for this disparity is that Chinese developers favor open-weight models such as DeepSeek and Qwen, reducing their need to purchase metered inference services.
The x402 protocol, which has backing from Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, and other payments companies, enables AI agents to automatically pay for digital services using cryptocurrency. Coinbase has begun allowing business customers to accept payments from AI agents.
Micropayment Efficiency
More than 87% of x402 payments analyzed were worth between one-hundredth of a cent and 10 cents, demonstrating stablecoins' capacity for micropayments that would be uneconomical through traditional credit card networks. In July, x402 processed approximately 75 million payments worth $24 million over 30 days.
The small transaction sizes highlight a key advantage of cryptocurrency for AI commerce. Unlike traditional payment methods, stablecoins can efficiently handle fractions of a cent, enabling AI agents to purchase services without human intervention.
China's Different Pattern
While the United States leads in AI model payments, China showed distinct activity patterns. Chinese-linked wallets accounted for roughly 90% of geographically identified payments for security and code-analysis services, much of it directed toward AgentLisa, an AI-powered smart contract auditing platform.
Questions About Growth Metrics
Transaction counts alone do not establish the level of genuine commercial demand. More than 87% of wallets first funded in the second quarter of 2026 received additional funding within 30 days, compared with 70.6% for wallets first funded in the third quarter of 2025. The average time between a wallet receiving funds and making its first x402 payment fell sharply, from 73 days in late 2025 to 18 minutes in the third quarter of 2026.
The figures measure identifiable transactions through x402 rather than the entire global market for AI payments. Autonomous software is beginning to establish its own spending patterns as AI agents become economic actors on blockchain networks.
