Visa-PYMNTS Report Says Payments Industry Is Ready for Agentic Commerce

Agentic commerce uses AI agents to search, compare products, select payment methods and potentially complete purchases for consumers. A report from PYMNTS Intelligence and Visa says the shift could move a growing share of retail discovery away from merchant websites and conventional platforms toward AI interfaces. Merchants that cannot distinguish agent-led traffic from human visits may struggle to measure conversion, manage fraud and authentication, or influence the recommendations shaping purchasing decisions.

The latest findings show that only 23% of merchants can clearly identify AI-driven traffic and shopping behavior. Most surveyed merchants expect AI agents to increasingly stand between consumers and sellers, affecting product discovery, recommendations and payment choices before independently executing transactions. The data points to an early advantage for businesses that build traceable, trusted agent interactions now, while the rest risk losing visibility into customers and control over the checkout journey.

Visa launched Visa Intelligent Commerce in 2025 as part of its push into AI agent commerce, enabling agents to search, compare prices and complete purchases on consumers’ behalf. As agent-led shopping gains traction, merchants need to identify trusted agents and authorize payments securely. A common interface spanning card networks, protocols and token vaults is therefore critical to adoption at scale.

Visa unveiled Intelligent Commerce Connect on April 8, 2026. Through a single integration with the Visa Acceptance Platform, it brings together product catalogs, payments, tokenization, spending controls and authentication. The platform supports Visa and non-Visa cards and is compatible with four protocols: TAP, MPP, ACP and UCP. It is being piloted with eight partners, including AWS and Aldar, and is expected to expand later this year. Visa has not disclosed its investment or pricing.