Stripe: Rise in AI Agent Purchases, Unpublished Figures

Stripe observes a rapid increase in payments made by AI agents via Link, while keeping specific volume figures confidential. Nearly 200 agents are now active, primarily in retail and travel. The service uses distinct card numbers and spending limits, as Stripe anticipates the arrival of competitors.

Stripe announces competition and an emerging market

Dan Hill, an executive at Stripe, states that Stripe will not be the only payment solution for purchases made by AI agents, citing PayPal and Shopify's Shop Pay as possible alternatives. He notes that the market for agent-driven purchases is still in its infancy. Anthropic and OpenAI are already using Link, but not yet to enable agents to make purchases.

Significant increase in September, but no absolute volumes published

In September, the number of transactions made by agents via Link increased 38-fold, and the payment volume grew by 20 times. However, Stripe has not disclosed the total number of purchases or the amounts involved. This growth has occurred from a low initial base, which limits the significance of the figures. Dan Hill believes that the volume is becoming significant as the use of AI agents via Link progresses.

About 200 agents, average basket size of $100, and retail in the lead

Stripe reported approximately 70 agents using Link at the time of its analysis, a figure that has reportedly risen to nearly 200 according to Dan Hill, including Meta's Muse and Grok Bot. Most agents make purchases of around $100 per transaction, but some users entrust them with flight bookings or furniture purchases amounting to several thousand dollars. Retail accounts for 36% of transactions and 32% of the volume, while travel makes up 28% of the volume. For security, Link does not transmit the actual credit card number to the agent but generates a distinct 16-digit number, and users can set spending limits.