Cardano has been added to the official x402 software kit, giving developers the code needed to let an app or an AI agent pay for an online service with ADA or tokens issued on the Cardano network.
The x402 standard is built to support automated, pay-per-use transactions inside internet requests, removing the need for accounts, card details or subscriptions. It repurposes the web’s largely unused HTTP 402 Payment Required response into a checkout flow embedded directly in the request itself. A service returns its price and payment instructions, the agent signs a payment, and the requested data or computing power is delivered after the transaction is verified.
How x402 is meant to work for AI agents
One example in the report is an agent preparing a report. Instead of relying on a person to open an account, enter card details or pay for a monthly plan, the agent could buy a single dataset only when it needs it.
Coinbase created x402 in 2025 before contributing it to a Linux Foundation-backed organization whose members include Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, Google and Amazon Web Services. According to CoinDesk, Solana, the XRP Ledger and several Ethereum-compatible networks already support the standard.
What Cardano has shipped so far
Engineers at the Cardano Foundation started with a specification that was accepted in June. They then built the client and server software needed to request payments alongside a so-called facilitator, which verifies and submits the transactions.
The initial release supports TypeScript, and Python is planned next.
The facilitator documentation says it has completed a real transaction on Cardano’s pre-production network, but it has not yet been run on mainnet. Developers can start integrating Cardano now, though the release does not show AI agents already making commercial payments with ADA at scale.
Joining the same race as Solana and XRP Ledger
With its addition to the official x402 toolkit, Cardano is entering the same race as Solana and the XRP Ledger: getting its assets installed wherever developers eventually decide to build machine payments.
The report also points to broader competition around AI agent payments. In a related reading note, CoinDesk said Ripple wants AI agents to pay in XRP and RLUSD, while the market is still mostly USDC.