AmEx backs AI transactions

American Express Co. announced two new initiatives to support AI. One is a developer kit; the other offers protection for registered agent purchases. The AmEx Agentic Commerce Experience (ACE) developer kit provides a framework with technical specifications. Designed for flexibility and interoperability with existing and emerging protocols, the developer kit will enable intent-driven transactions with end-to-end visibility across the commerce lifecycle through Amex's closed loop network.

"AI agents are beginning to reshape how people discover products and services, plan travel and dining, and make purchases," said Luke Gebb, EVP and head of global innovation at AmEx. "As these capabilities evolve, card members and merchants will expect the same level of trust and security that they always relied on from American Express. The ACE developer kit enables this in AI-powered commerce."

The kit provides developers access to several integrated services, including:

• Agent registration, to verify agents, so only trusted agent can transact on the AmEx network

• Account enablement to allows cardholders to register their cards for agentic transactions and allow personalized experiences

• Intent intelligence to ensure cardholder purchase intent is accurately captured to support authentication, authorization and disputes

• Cart context to support the sharing of cart details, before or after transactions, to enhance validation, authorizations and dispute investigations

• Payment credentials to enable verified AI agents to compete payments on behalf of a card members leveraging tokenized credentials

Standing behind cardholders

While many consumers have turned to AI to help find products they need and want, it has taken time for trust in the payment component to catch up.

A YouGov survey released in January 2026 found 26 percent of Americans participating in the study trust AI either a lot or somewhat in retail settings. As of early this year 74 percent of Americans surveyed are aware of agentic AI shopping tools, roughly two-thirds of shoppers are hesitant about letting AI handle their check out, however, YouGov reported.

On the other hand, research by Omnisend, a marketing automation platform, found 80 percent of Americans they surveyed would feel comfortable letting AI handle payment transactions, up from 68 percent last year.

Amex appears to be positioning itself to further reduce consumer trepidation in AI handling transactions. The company said it is offering "an industry-first commitment" to protect customers for agent purchases through Amex Agent Purchase Protection. If a cardholder authorizes an AI agent to make a purchase and the agent sends Amex the customer's authenticated purchase intent, Amex will protect any customer charges related to AI errors.

"As commerce becomes more agent-powered, trust becomes the defining factor," Gebb said. "Our goals is to ensure that when an agent acts on the card member's behalf, the identities of both the human and the agent are authenticated and intent is clear – so that every Amex-transaction reflects the backing and seamless experience that define our brand."

Amex's closed-loop network provides direct relationships with millions of cardholders and merchants, as well as an end-to-end view of every transaction, Amex said in its press release. "It positions the company well to holistically manage the challenges agentic commerce presents, enabling the delivery of intent-driven authorizations, enhanced fraud protection, efficient dispute resolution and strong security features to help protect card members and merchants," the company stated.

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