The competition between Visa, Mastercard, and Coinbase over AI-driven payment systems reveals two distinct approaches to agentic commerce. Visa and Mastercard focus on tokenized card credentials, launching initiatives like Mastercard's Agent Pay and Visa's Intelligent Commerce, which cater to consumer transactions. In contrast, Coinbase's x402 protocol facilitates stablecoin payments for machine-to-machine exchanges, emphasizing speed and low costs. Both camps face challenges around identity verification and fraud prevention, crucial for building consumer trust. Visa's Trusted Agent Protocol aims to establish legitimacy in transactions, leveraging its extensive experience in fraud management. Interestingly, both card networks are investing in stablecoin infrastructure, suggesting a strategic pivot to accommodate both payment methods. As of early 2026, consumer agentic shopping primarily utilizes card rails, while stablecoin solutions dominate machine payments, indicating a potential coexistence of these systems. However, the future landscape remains uncertain, hinging on whether agent-driven commerce leans more towards retail shopping or high-volume machine payments.