The future of holiday shopping is already here, and it's powered by artificial intelligence. As consumers prepare for the 2025 holiday season, Visa is leading the charge in transforming how Americans shop online by introducing cutting-edge technology that distinguishes legitimate AI shopping assistants from malicious bots threatening to disrupt commerce.​

The Rise of Agentic Commerce

Visa unveiled its Trusted Agent Protocol this month, an open security framework developed in partnership with Cloudflare and supported by industry giants including Microsoft, Shopify, and Adyen.

The protocol addresses a critical challenge facing retailers: AI-driven traffic to U.S. retail platforms has surged by an astounding 4,700% in the past year, creating both unprecedented opportunities and significant security risks. This explosive growth marks the dawn of "agentic commerce," where digital assistants browse, compare prices, and autonomously purchase products on behalf of consumers.​

Jack Forestell, Visa's Chief Product and Strategy Officer, explained that the protocol enables merchants and AI agents to exchange data securely, ensuring clarity that interactions involve registered and certified agents rather than harmful bots. "We want commerce to be secure, simple, seamless, trustworthy and fast," Forestell stated, adding that increased security will drive more overall commerce activity.​

The system allows vendors to cryptographically verify that an AI agent accessing their site is legitimate, protecting against bots that scrape pricing information, test stolen credit card numbers, or engage in fraudulent behaviors.

Importantly, the protocol requires no major checkout system overhauls, making adoption straightforward for merchants of all sizes.​

Why This Matters for American Retailers

For U.S. merchants, the challenge is substantial. Current bot detection measures designed to block automated traffic often inadvertently exclude genuine AI shoppers alongside malicious entities. Without standardized protocols, the retail ecosystem risks fragmentation and the emergence of closed-loop models that limit consumer choice.​

Visa's Head of Growth emphasized that "retailers require enhanced tools that offer deeper insights and clarity regarding agentic commerce activities to ensure safe participation". The Trusted Agent Protocol provides exactly that—a standardized, ecosystem-wide approach that protects both merchants and consumers while enabling innovation.​

This initiative is part of Visa's broader Intelligent Commerce program, which empowers AI agents to deliver personalized and secure shopping experiences at scale. The company has invested $11 billion over five years in fraud prevention technology, successfully blocking $40 billion in suspected fraudulent transactions in 2023 alone.​

The Holiday Shopping Transformation Ahead

While this holiday season will see AI agents primarily assisting with product discovery and recommendations—with consumers still clicking "buy"—Forestell predicts 2026 could mark the first real season of fully autonomous agentic shopping, where a measurable percentage of purchases happen entirely through AI agents. Dave Anderson, VP of Product Marketing at Contentsquare, notes that "AI is transforming holiday shopping into a race for speed and simplicity," though acknowledging we're "in the early innings of this shift".​

The protocol represents more than just a security tool—it's an infrastructure for the future of commerce. By establishing trust between AI agents and merchants, Visa is paving the way for seamless transactions where your digital assistant can safely handle everything from routine grocery orders to complex gift purchases. For American consumers accustomed to convenience, this promises a holiday shopping experience that's faster, more personalized, and infinitely more efficient than ever before.​

As the 2025 holiday season approaches, Visa's Trusted Agent Protocol positions the payments giant not just as a transaction facilitator, but as the architect of a secure, AI-powered shopping ecosystem that will define retail's next chapter.​