American Express has unveiled a developer toolkit designed to support agentic AI-driven payments, alongside what it describes as an industry-first protection policy covering purchases made by authorised AI agents.

The Amex Agentic Commerce Experiences (ACE) Developer Kit is a framework that integrates card services into AI-powered interactions.

The payments provider said the kit enables intent-driven transactions while maintaining visibility across the commerce lifecycle through American Express’s closed-loop network. The toolkit aims to ensure trust and control by verifying AI agents and enabling cardholders to authorise agent-based transactions.

The developer kit includes five core services. These cover agent registration, account enablement, intent intelligence, payment credentials and cart context. American Express said these capabilities allow AI agents to complete payments on behalf of cardholders while preserving authentication, authorisation and dispute management controls.

Alongside the toolkit, American Express has rolled out Amex Agent Purchase Protection, which provides protection to purchases made by registered AI agents. Under the proposed model, American Express said it will protect eligible cardholders from charges arising from AI agent errors, provided the user authorises the agent and authenticated purchase intent is transmitted.

American Express said its closed-loop network, where it operates as issuer, network and acquirer, provides end-to-end visibility across transactions. The company believes this structure will help manage fraud risk, improve dispute resolution and deliver enhanced security as AI-driven commerce grows.

The initiative also aims to reduce disputes for merchants by improving transaction transparency. For cardholders, American Express said it plans to introduce granular spending controls and embed membership benefits, rewards and offers directly into AI-powered purchasing journeys.

The company said it has already begun enabling AI-assisted transactions with platform partners, adding that it is collaborating with AI firms and industry groups to define standards for agent-based payments.

“AI agents are beginning to reshape how people discover products and services, plan travel and dining, and make purchases,” said Luke Gebb, executive vice president and head of global innovation at American Express. “As these capabilities evolve, card members and merchants will expect the same level of trust and security that they always relied on from American Express. The ACE Developer Kit enables this in AI-powered commerce.”

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