Picture this: your AI assistant spots a better yield opportunity at 3 a.m. and executes the trade without waking you up. This is no longer science fiction. Coinbase dropped Agentic Wallets on Wednesday—the first crypto infrastructure designed specifically for autonomous artificial intelligence.
The system lets AI agents hold funds, execute trades, earn yields, and handle blockchain transactions on their own. The system eliminates the need for human approval. Developers Erik Reppel and Josh Nickerson say today’s AI agents are great at answering questions and summarizing documents, but money creates a problem. They have the ability to suggest trades, but they lack the ability to execute them. “The next generation of agents won’t just advise; they’ll act,” the pair wrote.
Breaking Down the Barriers
The infrastructure runs on x402, Coinbase’s payment protocol designed specifically for autonomous AI. Since launch, x402 has chalked up 50 million transactions, which is proof enough that there is a genuine appetite for machine-to-machine payments.
Your completely free resource hub designed to boost your knowledge of cryptocurrencies
The new system also builds on AgentKit, the framework Coinbase introduced last November. AgentKit lets developers embed wallets when creating agents. Agentic Wallets takes a different approach: plug and play with any agent you’ve already got.
It works across EVM-compatible chains and Solana. Base, Coinbase’s Layer 2 network, offers gasless transactions. Users get a command-line interface to check on agents, top up wallets, and add new features through straightforward commands.
Security Takes Center Stage
Coinbase packed in multiple safeguards to stop agents from going rogue. Users can set spending limits, session caps, and other transaction controls while using these AI agents.
Furthermore, “enclave isolation” keeps private keys locked inside Coinbase’s infrastructure. The agent never sees them. Neither does the language model powering it. That’s essential protection against leaks or manipulation.
The technology provides opportunities that extend beyond portfolio management. AI agents can also cover their API bills, buy computing power, and jump into DeFi markets. Lightning Labs rolled out similar tools for Bitcoin’s Lightning Network the same day—a sign the whole industry’s moving toward financially independent AI that operates inside guardrails people actually trust.
