Celo Core Co. has launched a services marketplace called 'buy' that allows AI agents to autonomously pay for services using stablecoins. The platform, which operates on the Celo network, supports more than 700 services and accepts payments in USDC, USD₮, and USA₮.
What the 'buy' marketplace does
The 'buy' marketplace is designed for AI agents — software that can act on its own — to find and purchase services without human intervention. Instead of a person clicking through checkout pages, an agent can browse the catalog, select a service, and complete the transaction using stablecoins. The marketplace lists over 700 services, though Celo Core Co. hasn't specified exactly which categories those cover or how pricing is set.
Payments are settled in stablecoins: USDC, USD₮, and USA₮. These are digital tokens pegged to the U.S. dollar, which means prices don't fluctuate the way cryptocurrencies like bitcoin or ether do. For AI agents making repeated, small purchases, that stability matters — an agent can't easily budget if the payment token's value swings between when it decides to buy and when the transaction clears.
Why stablecoins and the Celo network
Celo Core Co. built the marketplace on the Celo network, a blockchain that has positioned itself around mobile-first payments and low transaction fees. Using Celo means transactions can settle quickly and cheaply, which is important for machine-to-machine payments where the amounts might be tiny. The choice of stablecoins over native tokens also sidesteps the volatility problem that has kept many autonomous payment experiments on the sidelines.
The three stablecoins accepted — USDC, USD₮, and USA₮ — give agents and their operators some flexibility. USDC and USD₮ are widely used across crypto exchanges and DeFi platforms. USA₮ is a newer entrant, and its inclusion here suggests Celo Core Co. wants to support multiple dollar-backed options rather than lock users into a single issuer.
Autonomous payments have been a sticking point for AI agents. An agent can research, compare, and decide, but actually paying for something usually requires a human to enter card details or approve a transfer. The 'buy' marketplace tries to close that gap by giving agents a native way to transact. It's a narrow use case for now — services on Celo — but it points to a future where software handles procurement end-to-end.
That future raises questions the launch doesn't answer. Who is liable if an AI agent overspends or buys the wrong service? How are disputes handled when there's no human on either side of the transaction? Celo Core Co. hasn't detailed its dispute resolution or spending controls. Those details will matter for any business considering letting an agent loose on a marketplace with real money.
The 'buy' marketplace is live now, according to Celo Core Co. The company hasn't said how many AI agents or developers have signed up, nor which specific services are available beyond the 700-plus figure. For now, the launch is a concrete step toward agent-driven commerce — and a test of whether stablecoins on a payments-focused blockchain can become the default rails for software that buys things on its own.
