AmEx unveils ACE developer kit and agent protection

American Express has introduced an ACE Developer Kit and an Agent Purchase Protection program to support agentic commerce, the company announced. The tools aim to define technical standards and consumer safeguards for third-party agents that transact on customers’ behalf.

The ACE Developer Kit provides API specifications and a framework for how AI agents should interact with cardholder accounts and merchants. The kit lays out technical expectations for authentication, data exchange and merchant integrations to create predictable agent-driven transactions, according to Luke Gebb, head of global innovation.

Agent Purchase Protection promises to credit card members if a registered agent acting on a recorded instruction makes an error that causes an incorrect charge, Gebb said. He summarized the policy this way: “we’re going to cover the card member and credit them.” The protection applies when cardholder intent is clear, AmEx approves the transaction and the merchant fulfills the order.

AmEx is also preparing its features and assets for use by large language models and other agents. The Digital Labs team is making offers, booking tools and other functions available to agents and LLMs, while building conversational experiences inside the AmEx mobile app and website so customers can interact directly with services and agents, Gebb said.

AmEx Digital Labs, which Gebb formed in 2017 and now leads as global head of innovation, has roughly 120 staff and targets advancing about 20 projects to market each year. The lab pilots ideas, stabilizes products, and then transfers them to business units for broader deployment once they meet operational and compliance requirements.

Gebb said the work includes adjusting approval and risk processes so reviews match a project’s level of risk. Higher-risk features that move money will undergo full controls, while lower-risk customer features will face lighter review.

The lab is also developing blockchain-based services. One product, Passport, issues unique tokens that record travel history for users of the AmEx mobile app; customers can collect and share memories without needing to know the underlying technology. The team is exploring stablecoins at an early stage.

Gebb noted that AmEx will continue to support digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. He said agent-driven tools are intended to add ways to transact and manage experiences rather than replace websites or physical stores. He expects transactions from agents to appear in early, trusted use cases over the next year.