What is AP2?
Agent Payments Protocol — an open technical standard that gives AI agents a secure, auditable way to make payments. Tamper-proof digital mandates. Cryptographic proof. Payment agnostic.
How It Works
You tell your agent: "Buy Nike running shoes under $150 when they go on sale." Your agent monitors prices, and when conditions are met, executes the purchase with a cryptographically signed mandate proving you authorized it. Shoppers stay in control. Agents execute within boundaries.
Payment Agnostic
Works with credit cards, debit cards, real-time bank transfers, and crypto via Coinbase A2A x402. Integrates with Google Pay, Affirm, Klarna. One protocol, any payment method.
Google donated AP2 to the FIDO Alliance — the industry body behind passwordless authentication. This makes AP2 an open, community-governed protocol. Anyone can contribute. Adoption scales with the industry, not just Google.
Protocol Stack
AP2 sits between UCP (commerce flow) and MCP (agent tools), adding the cryptographic authorization layer.
The Three Mandates
Digital contracts that authorize every agent transaction. Think of them as tamper-proof legal documents your AI agent carries.
| Mandate | What It Does | When Created |
|---|---|---|
| Intent Mandate | Defines shopping intent: max spend, brands, categories, conditions | User makes request |
| Cart Mandate | Locks exact items and price. Signed with hardware key to authorize | Final approval |
| Payment Mandate | Credential for payment networks. Signals AI involvement | Payment processing |
For fully autonomous scenarios — "buy concert tickets the moment they go on sale" — users sign a detailed Intent Mandate upfront with hard conditions (price limit, timing, etc.). The agent executes independently. No human in the loop.
Example Intent Mandate structure:
{
"mandate_type": "intent",
"protocol_version": "0.2.0",
"user_public_key": "0x...",
"conditions": {
"max_spend": "150.00 USD",
"brands": ["Nike", "Adidas"],
"categories": ["running_shoes"],
"valid_until": "2026-06-01T00:00:00Z"
},
"signature": "signed_with_hardware_key..."
}
Integration Guide
Connect Google Payment with AI agents via AP2 in 5 steps.
Make sure your checkout supports UCP endpoints and Google Pay before adding AP2. See UCP Developer Docs.
Integrate UCP Checkout
Implement Universal Commerce Protocol endpoints. Enable Google Pay. Optimize product feeds with complete structured data.
Configure Mandate Signing
Set up Intent Mandates for shopping intentions and Cart Mandates for payment authorization in your checkout flow.
Support Both Payment Modes
Human-Present (user reviews Cart Mandate and signs) and Human-Not-Present (agent presents pre-approved Intent Mandate).
Enable Payment Mandate Verification
Set up the Payment Mandate credential flow so payment networks can verify the AI involvement flag.
Test with Gemini Spark
AP2 is rolling out via Gemini Spark. Test your mandate flow with Google's test agents before production deployment.
Protocol Partners
| Protocol | Role | Integration with AP2 |
|---|---|---|
| UCP | Commerce flow end-to-end | AP2 adds payment authorization layer on top |
| MCP | Tool and data discovery (Anthropic) | AP2 secures MCP-initiated transactions |
| A2A x402 | Web3 payments (Coinbase) | AP2 supports crypto payments extension |
| FIDO Alliance | Authentication standards governance | AP2 donated for open community governance |
Target Keywords
Integration & Support
Expert help implementing AP2 mandates, UCP composition, and agent payment flows.
1. AP2 Integration Services
End-to-end help implementing AP2 mandates, UCP composition, and agent payment flows. From readiness assessments and mandate signing flow setup to full production integration with your existing checkout infrastructure.
AP2 readiness assessment ($1,500), mandate flow implementation ($3,000-7,000), end-to-end AP2+UCP integration ($8,000-15,000).
2. Payment Infrastructure Partners
We work with vetted payment partners including Stripe, Affirm, Klarna, and Coinbase Commerce to set up your AP2-ready payment stack. Google Pay integration, BNPL options, and crypto gateways — deployed and tested.
AP2-compatible tools, developer SDKs, testing sandboxes, and compliance software recommendations included.
3. AP2 Developer Newsletter
Weekly updates on AP2 specification changes, integration best practices, compliance requirements, and production case studies. Private community access for developers working on agent payment implementations.
Includes: specification change tracking, mandate template library, integration checklist updates, and community Q&A.
Most teams start with an AP2 readiness assessment ($1,500). We review your current checkout infrastructure, map out the mandate signing flow, and provide an integration timeline. Contact us through the form below.