Cloudflare launches permanent AI identity and wallet for autonomous online shopping

Cloudflare announced cloudflare.id, an identity solution that assigns each user a permanent, machine-readable web address for AI agents to present to online merchants. Coupled with a virtual wallet funded by bank transfers and converted into a stablecoin, the system enables agents to complete purchases while users can enforce spending caps and restrict which merchants are accessible. The company also provides AI communication tools for merchants to handle queries and transactions from these agents.

Stephanie Cohen noted that bots now generate about 57% of web traffic, prompting a reimagining of the internet as a series of micro-transactions rather than subscription-based content. The rollout follows similar efforts, such as Moonpay’s PayBox wallet, and aligns with open-source protocols like the X402 regime involving Coinbase and Stripe, as payment networks adapt to the emerging bot-driven commerce ecosystem.