Ripple joins x402 Foundation to spearhead AI-driven payment standard

Ripple announced its entry as a Premier Member of the newly launched x402 Foundation, an initiative under the Linux Foundation that aims to create an open, internet‑native payment standard for AI agents, APIs and other applications. The foundation, which became operational on 14 July 2026, counts roughly 40 member organisations—including Visa, Mastercard, Google, Amazon Web Services, Coinbase and several blockchain foundations—and will steward the x402 protocol originally contributed by Coinbase.

Ripple already supports the x402 protocol on the XRP Ledger, enabling autonomous software agents to settle transactions using XRP and Ripple’s stablecoin RLUSD. The integration provides three‑to‑five‑second settlement without gas‑fee bidding, positioning the ledger as infrastructure for high‑frequency, low‑value machine‑to‑machine payments. Through its membership, Ripple will participate in the foundation’s technical and governance work, helping shape the future of AI‑driven commerce.

The x402 protocol embeds payment capabilities directly into HTTP web interactions, allowing a wide range of payment methods—from traditional cards to stablecoins—to be used in automated transactions. Its launch marks a coordinated effort by finance, cloud and blockchain firms to establish a neutral, interoperable standard for the emerging AI‑powered economy.