Crypto Is The Money For AI, Says Economist As Coinbase CEO Teases Stablecoin-Powered Transactions Between Agents

Aniket Verma

September 17, 2025

Renowned economist Alex Tabbarok described cryptocurrencies as the “money” for artificial intelligence on Tuesday after Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) CEO teased a new feature that enables AI agents to transact using stablecoins.

AI Agents To Use USDC For Quick Settlements

Tabbarok’s remark was in response to Brian Armstrong‘s X post about the integration of the x402, an internet-native payment protocol developed by Coinbase, into Google's new Agentic Payments Protocol, AP2.

“Agents can actually pay each other now, with x402 powering the stablecoin rail inside Google's new Agentic Payments Protocol (AP2),” Armstrong said.

With this integration, agents can now execute tasks themselves that previously required manual intervention, such as payments for data crawls, services or microtasks, Coinbase said in a separate blog post.

Coinbase added that customers can pay in USDC (CRYPTO: USDC) with a single tap, with no card numbers or zip codes required for authentication.

Crypto is the money for AIs. https://t.co/3GDSdaDHoX
— Alex Tabarrok (@ATabarrok) September 16, 2025

See Also: AI Funding Landscape On Fire: Over $11.4 Billion Spanning Nuclear and Consumer to Data

A Developing Trend

AI agents are software systems that use AI to pursue goals and execute tasks on behalf of users. Agents can work with other agents to coordinate and perform complex workflows and

Tabbarok’s comments echo a growing sentiment within the tech industry about the synergy between AI and cryptocurrency. Renowned investor Cathie Wood highlighted the transformative potential of cryptocurrency and AI in the financial services sector earlier in May.

Coinbase’s Big AI Embrace

Armstrong-led Coinbase, meanwhile, has embarked on an ambitious AI push, aiming to increase the percentage of AI-generated code at the company to more than 50% within the next month.

The cryptocurrency behemoth is pushing its employees to increase adoption of large language models and admitted to firing those who failed to adapt in time.

Price Action: Coinbase shares were down 0.39% in pre-market trading after closing 0.27% lower at $327.91 during Wednesday's regular trading session, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Read Next:

Is Your Job Safe? AI Disruption Is Closer Than You Think, Trent Gillespie Warns

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Photo courtesy: Camilo Concha / Shutterstock.com

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