Autonomous AI agents gained access to the global blockchain ecosystem and the ability to independently conduct payment operations through Alchemy’s Web3 infrastructure.
Alchemy, one of the largest Web3 infrastructure platforms, announced the launch of a mechanism that allows AI agents to independently register, pay for services, and retrieve data from more than 100 blockchains.
AI agents can connect directly to Alchemy’s infrastructure through the x402 standard, independently pay for computing resources, and obtain blockchain data with institutional-grade reliability. All operations are performed without human involvement, from identification to payment execution.
The new system is built around the use of an on-chain wallet as both an identification method and a payment source. The agent interacts with Alchemy’s APIs, including access to nodes (RPC), NFT data, portfolios, and asset prices. If a request requires payment, the system returns an HTTP 402 response code indicating the required amount and instructions for topping up the so-called “agentic account.”
Payments are made in the USDC stablecoin on the Base L2 network through the open x402 standard developed by Coinbase for embedded internet payments. Transaction verification and settlement are handled by the CDP facilitator service. After payment confirmation, Alchemy processes the request and provides the requested data, deducting funds from the replenished balance. Subsequent requests are executed automatically until the balance is depleted. When the balance reaches zero, the system again generates a 402 code and the agent replenishes the account.
At launch, AI agents can purchase computing resources using a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) model with a minimum equivalent of one U.S. dollar in Alchemy’s billing units. Payment support is currently implemented on Base, with expansion to other networks planned in the near future.
At the initial stage, agents have access to:
- basic node access (Core RPC) across all supported networks;
- interfaces for working with NFTs, including ownership and metadata queries;
- tools for viewing multi-chain crypto portfolios;
- data on current and historical token prices.
According to the company, on-chain activity from autonomous agents increased sharply in recent months. They execute transactions, manage positions in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, track prices, and perform complex multi-step operations continuously. Alchemy believes such automation could increase on-chain activity by dozens of times.
In early 2026, analysts at a16z highlighted a significant shift in digital economy interaction models driven by Web3 technologies and artificial intelligence. More about the trend of integrating AI agents into FinTech solutions can be found in a special feature at CP Media.
