AI-Agent Payments: Why Authorization Is Not Settlement
Edited by Steinar Vigdel Kolnes, Editor, Oslo
The Defiant examines how AP2, x402 and Mastercard Agent Pay address different stages of payments made by AI agents.
Payments made by AI agents involve distinct steps, from documenting permission to spend to completing a transaction. The Defiant examines those roles through AP2, x402 and Mastercard Agent Pay.
AP2 records an agent’s spending authority, while x402 conveys payment requests. They address different parts of the process rather than serving as interchangeable payment mechanisms.
Mastercard’s machine-payment pilot highlights a further distinction: a signed voucher is not the same as final settlement. Evidence of authorization and completion of a payment remain separate stages.
Source: The Defiant
