Adyen has taken a novel approach to agentic commerce, a practice where artificial intelligence executes transactions on behalf of consumers autonomously. This isn't science fiction; it's the future of retail. I’ve been following this space closely as both an entrepreneur and a business strategist, and Adyen’s strategy particularly caught my attention for prioritizing merchant control amidst technological disruption. While many large players in payments are racing to standardize the protocols that will shape this new era, Adyen is quietly building infrastructure designed to keep merchants front and center. Let’s break this down and see what lessons we can take from their playbook.
The Rise of Agentic Commerce
Agentic commerce flips traditional purchasing dynamics. Instead of a customer browsing a website or going to a store, they can ask an AI assistant to handle the entire process. Right now, major companies like Google, OpenAI, and Visa are working on interoperability standards. For example, Google’s “Agent Payment Protocol” ensures that AI systems responsibly activate transactions. Sound futuristic? It’s already happening.
One challenge, however, is that most AI developers are focused on the convenience of users. That’s great for consumers but could marginalize merchants, reducing their ownership of pricing, sales data, and customer loyalty programs. For businesses built consciously around customer experience and relationships, this shift can be risky.
This is where Adyen steps in with their merchant-first focus. While others aim to disrupt traditional relationships between consumers and businesses, Adyen’s structural approach is designed to ensure that local shops, global enterprises, and digital startups all maintain control of their own destinies.
What Sets Adyen Apart
Adyen introduced the notion of "merchant-first agentic commerce." At its core, their approach aligns four key pillars to ensure that merchants maintain control, regardless of how transactions evolve:
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Transaction Permission as Proof
Every action an AI agent takes must come with explicit customer consent secured through cryptographic signatures. Adyen’s partnerships with frameworks like Google’s AP2 protocol ensure that businesses can trust agents’ instructions and avoid unauthorized activities. -
Merchant-Controlled Payments
Instead of forcing businesses onto an entirely new system, Adyen’s payment rails are fully adaptable to existing infrastructures. This allows companies to preserve the tools they already use , such as tokenization and routing systems , while benefiting from agentic commerce. -
Preserving Customer Relationships
One central promise by Adyen is allowing businesses to retain customer touchpoints. In this model, loyalty rewards, histories, and unique customer journeys remain owned by the merchant, not handed off to external platforms. -
Data Ownership
Rather than AI agents acting as new intermediaries that cut off businesses from consumer data, Adyen emphasizes keeping customer information in the hands of merchants for ongoing engagement.
By committing to these principles, Adyen reassures merchants that moving to this new digital landscape doesn’t mean losing their connection to the people they serve.
Strategic Partnerships Reinforce Adyen’s Mission
Adyen collaborates closely with giants like Cloudflare and Visa to develop security protocols that guarantee fraud detection and risk management tailored for AI transaction contexts. They’ve integrated universal token vault solutions to ensure seamless adaptability. And let's not forget their role in the movement advocating for decentralized agent control, which addresses merchant fears of becoming overly reliant on controlling companies like OpenAI.
This interoperability strategy ensures that AI cannot displace the merchant outright. Adyen’s competitors, like Stripe and PayPal, are also exploring agentic commerce protocols, but their approaches tend to channel customers into their ecosystems. Adyen positions itself differently by ensuring merchants stay in their own lanes, unhindered.
A Practical Guide for Entrepreneurs to Adapt
Adyen’s framework offers valuable lessons for startup founders, local businesses, and established companies. If you’re thinking about adopting AI-driven commerce, here are steps to consider:
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Reclaim Ownership of Your Data:
Take stock of where your data sits and who controls it now. When dealing with third-party platforms, always verify if you can retain access and ownership. -
Audit Your Ecosystem:
Are the payment systems you use adaptable for AI-driven updates down the road? If not, work with providers like Adyen that prioritize future-proofing. -
Prepare Your Infrastructure for Scale:
The ability to onboard AI agency purchasing means your backend needs to handle new types of security, fraud prevention, and order tracking. -
Integrate Cryptographic Agreements:
Dive into how cryptographic proof for agent transaction approval could be implemented in systems like loyalty programs or subscription services. -
Invest in AI Trust Layers:
You won’t need to build AI, but staying informed about how protocols like Google’s AP2 or Visa's Trusted Agent Standards work can help you pick strategic partners.
Common Merchant Mistakes in AI Adoption
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Over-outsourcing Control
It’s tempting to let large platforms handle the entire integration process, but this risks handing away customer ownership. Maintain as much autonomy over processes as possible. -
Ignoring Interoperability
By adopting closed systems, businesses risk locking themselves out from broader agentic commerce benefits in the future. Always look for payment providers advocating open standards. -
Skimping on Fraud Protection
Agentic commerce will introduce new fraud vulnerabilities. Choosing providers focused on real-time detection and verification, like Adyen, can be critical.
Final Thoughts
By building products centered on merchant needs, Adyen is setting an example for how businesses can thrive in a future of agent-driven transactions. They remind startups and enterprises alike that simply joining the latest technology trend isn’t enough. Instead, businesses need frameworks that allow agility without sacrificing independence.
If you’re running a business and are curious about staying ahead in the growing space of AI commerce, then looking into businesses like Adyen makes a lot of sense. Between their partnerships with major players, holistic digital payment solutions, and intense focus on merchants' interests, they ensure you won't lose sight of your customers. This is a model worth exploring for any business facing technological waves ahead.
FAQ
1. What is agentic commerce?
Agentic commerce is a new model where AI agents execute transactions on behalf of consumers autonomously, revolutionizing traditional buying methods. Explore agentic commerce concepts
2. How does Adyen approach agentic commerce differently from competitors?
Adyen prioritizes merchants by focusing on interoperability, data ownership, and maintaining customer relationships, unlike competitors who emphasize consumer convenience. Learn about Adyen’s merchant-first framework
3. What is the “merchant-first” framework proposed by Adyen?
Adyen's framework highlights four key principles: cryptographic proof, merchant-controlled payment systems, preserving customer touchpoints, and ensuring merchant data ownership. Explore Adyen’s merchant-first framework
4. How does Adyen ensure data security and fraud prevention in agentic commerce?
Adyen collaborates with companies like Cloudflare and develops cryptographic protocols to ensure secure transactions and fraud prevention.
5. What are Google’s contributions to agentic commerce?
Google introduced the Agent Payment Protocol (AP2), which provides cryptographic standards for AI transactions to secure user consent and prevent unauthorized purchases. Learn about Google’s AP2 Protocol
6. Why is interoperability crucial in agentic commerce?
Interoperability ensures AI systems across platforms can work together seamlessly, maintaining merchant control and preventing disintermediation. Explore interoperability strategies
7. How does agentic commerce address concerns about losing customer relationships?
Adyen ensures that merchants retain ownership of customer data, loyalty programs, and personal touchpoints, even when transactions are facilitated by AI. Learn about data and relationships in agentic commerce
8. What are some risks for merchants in agentic commerce, and how can they prepare?
Risks include loss of control over customer data, dependence on AI intermediaries, and potential fraud vulnerabilities. Merchants can prepare by adopting scalable, secure infrastructures and aligning with open standards.
9. How does Adyen compare to other key players like Stripe and Visa in agentic commerce?
While competitors are building systems that integrate customers into their ecosystems, Adyen emphasizes merchant-led infrastructure and interoperability to avoid reliance on third-party platforms. Learn about Adyen’s strategy
10. Will agentic commerce affect how businesses handle loyalty programs?
Yes, with agentic commerce, businesses must ensure that loyalty rewards and customer experiences remain under their control rather than being managed by AI agents or external systems tied to competing ecosystems. Read more about loyalty in agentic commerce
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
