Pat Kinsel retweeted
x401 now live in Cloudflare!! 🔥 @proof
proof.com/blog/x401-protocol…
Pat Kinsel retweeted
Your agent looks like a giant fraud and liability problem to your bank.
Even if you sent it.
The bank needs to know who it’s acting for and whether you approved what it’s doing.
I mapped the protocols that could make this work:
Today @proof is launching a @Cloudflare Worker for X401. Enabling near instant deployment so Cloudflare customers can protect any endpoint and require verified identity and authorization.
A Worker gets a request from an AI agent. It can’t tell who sent it, or whether that person approved this. x401 now works with Cloudflare Workers: the Worker asks, the person approves in their Proof wallet, the Worker verifies. See it at #Money2020, Booth 5069: hubs.la/Q04BGT8R0
More here proof.com/blog/x401-protocol…
Pat Kinsel retweeted
Founder and CEO @proof, @patk on how HTTP 401 makes identity verifiable:
"So if you go to a site and it can't load, you get a 400, for example. And so four zero one has always been the status code for identity and authorization."
"So it can say I need identity. I specifically need a verified email address, your name, your date of birth, whatever it is they can specify."
"A verifiable credential chains all the way back to source to source. And every step, proof has been audited for how we verify identity, how we issue credentials, how we store credentials, how we manage authentication and access."
"So that chip on your card is a PKI certificate, and so proof issues PKI certificates for human identity that can sign transactions just like a credit card can with a cryptogram."
Don't block agents. Identify them.
@sytaylor is joined by @patk , founder and CEO @proof
Pat Kinsel has built an open framework to identify agents that is compatible with how banks do KYC today.
It's called x401, built on the internet's HTTP 401 "authorization is required"
But the really clever bit is the fact that it then uses verifiable credentials that are IAL2 certified to prove the authentication for the underlying human.
Why's that clever?
Because that's the same standard the US government published under the National Institute of Science and Technology NIST, and the one that FinCEN recently gave guidance on as being usable in bank Customer Identification Programs (CIP).
Check out the entire video to know more
Timestamps:
00:00 Proof launches x401 to bring trusted identity to AI agents
01:25 How x401 and verifiable credentials establish cryptographic identity
02:45 Should businesses block AI agents or verify their authority?
03:30 Why authentication alone cannot satisfy financial institutions' compliance obligations
04:34 Amazon's agent blocking, credential sharing risks and explicit consent
06:18 How x401 complements x402 payments and stablecoin-powered machine transactions
08:24 Transaction signing and binding prove an agent has delegated authority
10:00 How independent audits and identity standards establish trust in Proof
11:15 Why open identity standards matter for interoperability and stablecoin adoption
12:20 How verifiable authorization reduces payment fraud and addresses liability
Pat Kinsel retweeted
Know Your Agent coming online. x401 agent identity proofs alongside x402 agent payments is a strong step towards safer and more trustworthy agentic economic activity.
Circle 🤝 @proof
With Proof, we’re exploring how agents can prove who they act for and pay in USDC in one exchange.
Verified identity through x401. USDC payments through x402 and Circle Agent Wallets.
See the joint demo at @money2020, booth 5069.
globenewswire.com/news-relea…
Pat Kinsel retweeted
Proof + @circle: At Money2020, both teams will share a demo of an AI agent proving who they act on behalf of (x401) and paying in @USDC (x402) in the same exchange. See it live at #Money2020, booth 5069: hubs.la/Q04BzGrL0
Pat Kinsel retweeted
Good morning, USA!
You will find the first x401 production demo, powered by Superfluid Wallet, at Proof's booth. You can win 1000 USDC by entering our raffle - where else but at @money2020 Las Vegas!
To participate: Copy the prompt. Paste it to your Agent. Send. Verify your humanness, and you are in!
Who vouches for an AI agent acting in your customer’s name? Until today, nobody. Now the open x401 protocol is live: any site can ask an agent for verified legal identity and signed approval. No Proof contract. See it at Money20/20, booth 5069: hubs.la/Q04BfNkW0
Great to go on @theinformation to talk about @Proof and x401. Starts at 23:30.
The Information | TITV | October 16, 2026 xitter.cf/i/broadcasts/1OxwbnMyk…
👇
Founder and CEO @proof, @patk on how x401 and x402 compose:
"We think they're different for a reason, and what they need to do is compose."
"If you think about an API or agent to agent service, they're not gonna go sign a contract, not gonna make an enterprise commitment. They want streaming payment."
"People can enroll in our system at the edge, pay us through x four zero two, not make volume commitments, pay transactionally."
"Sometimes you're just paying for something and sometimes you're just identifying yourself. If you're opening an account, you're not paying.”
Pat Kinsel retweeted
One day we'll have to Know Your Agent instead of blocking them.
There's a new protocol for just that.
And it is compatible with how banks do KYC
I cannot under emphasize how massive that is
You're going to want to check out x401
👇
Don't block agents. Identify them.
@sytaylor is joined by @patk , founder and CEO @proof
Pat Kinsel has built an open framework to identify agents that is compatible with how banks do KYC today.
It's called x401, built on the internet's HTTP 401 "authorization is required"
But the really clever bit is the fact that it then uses verifiable credentials that are IAL2 certified to prove the authentication for the underlying human.
Why's that clever?
Because that's the same standard the US government published under the National Institute of Science and Technology NIST, and the one that FinCEN recently gave guidance on as being usable in bank Customer Identification Programs (CIP).
Check out the entire video to know more
Timestamps:
00:00 Proof launches x401 to bring trusted identity to AI agents
01:25 How x401 and verifiable credentials establish cryptographic identity
02:45 Should businesses block AI agents or verify their authority?
03:30 Why authentication alone cannot satisfy financial institutions' compliance obligations
04:34 Amazon's agent blocking, credential sharing risks and explicit consent
06:18 How x401 complements x402 payments and stablecoin-powered machine transactions
08:24 Transaction signing and binding prove an agent has delegated authority
10:00 How independent audits and identity standards establish trust in Proof
11:15 Why open identity standards matter for interoperability and stablecoin adoption
12:20 How verifiable authorization reduces payment fraud and addresses liability
