How USDC Escrow Contracts Enable Trustless Payments for AI Agent Services

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Developers building autonomous AI agents face a core payment problem: neither the payer nor the agent can safely transact without risking non-payment or fund theft. A smart contract escrow solution locks USDC tokens until a verifiable proof of task completion is submitted, removing the need for a trusted intermediary. The approach, detailed for the Base blockchain, uses an ERC-20-compatible Solidity contract that transitions through defined states such as Funded, Completed, and Refunded. A timelocked refund mechanism protects payers if the agent fails to deliver, while the agent is guaranteed payment upon verified completion. The design deliberately avoids complex features like multi-signature or upgradeability to minimize the attack surface and keep gas costs predictable.

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