OCTO x402

Octo x402 Protocol is an all-in-one suite for x402 services built by Coinbase.

• What is x402? x402 is an open payment standard created by Coinbase Developer Platform that allows AI agents, APIs, and web services to autonomously pay for data, API access, and digital resources using onchain stablecoins (like USDC) — without human intervention, subscriptions, or API keys

• Purpose and Motivation It aims to eliminate human-in-the-loop payment friction in digital ecosystems. Traditional systems like credit cards and PayPal were designed for humans, not machines, causing delays, high fees, and manual processes. x402 enables machine-native payments that are instant, secure, and globally accessible

• Core Concept — The HTTP 402 Code The protocol revives the long-reserved HTTP 402 “Payment Required” status code. When a service receives a request without payment, it returns a 402 response with payment details. Once payment is made (e.g., via USDC), access is automatically granted — enabling true pay-per-use transactions

• Key Benefits

  • Instant settlement (~200 ms) and near-zero fees

  • No chargebacks or fraud risk

  • Chain-agnostic support for multiple blockchains and assets

  • Simple integration via middleware in one line of code

  • AI-first monetization allowing agents to pay dynamically

• Vision for Agentic Commerce x402 lays the foundation for autonomous digital economies, where AI agents, IoT devices, and web services transact directly in real time. It turns the internet into a self-monetizing ecosystem, fueling new business models like micro-payments, pay-per-API calls, and per-use AI inference