x402 Protocol Embeds Crypto Micropayments Directly Into HTTP for AI Agents

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The x402 specification enables AI agents to pay for web resources natively within the HTTP protocol, eliminating the need for separate billing systems or SDKs. When a client requests a paid resource, the server responds with a 402 Payment Required status and a structured Pay-Payload header detailing the required cryptocurrency transfer. The client signs the payment using an ERC-4337 wallet and resends the request with an X-Payment header containing the verified proof. The server then validates the on-chain transaction, checks for replay attacks via a nonce, and returns the requested resource upon confirmation. Built on the Base network using USDC, the flow is stateless and compatible with standard HTTP clients like fetch, axios, and curl.

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