OpenAI, Visa team up to let AI agents make purchases online

Published Thu, Jun 11, 2026 · 10:15 AM

[NEW YORK] OpenAI and Visa are now allowing artificial intelligence agents to make purchases online after users give their permission, part of an expansion of a previously announced pact between the two technology companies.

Visa’s payment services will be integrated into OpenAI’s platform so online retailers can accept agent-driven transactions, according to a statement on Wednesday (Jun 10). A customer could direct an AI agent to pay a bill or buy paper towels, for example. OpenAI’s ChatGPT is the best-known AI platform among consumers.

“AI will transform commerce more profoundly than the Internet or mobile technology ever did,” said Jack Forestell, Visa’s chief product and strategy officer. “As AI agents become active participants in the economy, Visa’s focus is to ensure transactions are trusted, secure and seamless.”

In addition to OpenAI, Visa announced collaborations with firms including Anthropic PBC and Microsoft last year as it sought to develop AI products in anticipation of this week’s official launch.

Visa rivals, Mastercard and PayPal Holdings, are exploring similar collaborations as payment and AI firms consider how both businesses and consumers will interact with AI for commerce.

In December, Oliver Jenkyn, Visa’s group president for global markets, said that 2026 will be the year for AI-assisted shopping, while the more advanced age of agentic commerce, where agents fully complete a search and purchase for a consumer, may take more time.

Visa and OpenAI will also further develop enterprise applications for AI-driven payments, the firms said in the statement. BLOOMBERG