ChatGPT Wallet lets AI agents shop without seeing your card number

OpenAI's AI agents can now pay for things themselves. ChatGPT Wallet lets dots, the always-on agents with their own cloud computer that OpenAI introduced in late September, buy products online or book a hotel. OpenAI built the feature with American Express, Mastercard and Visa. According to the ChatGPT release notes from November 13, it is rolling out gradually to Pro subscribers aged 18 or older who live in the US and have a US billing address. OpenAI has not announced plans for other countries.

The agent only gets a substitute card number

Users add a card once through a secure form rather than in the chat. Before each purchase, the dot shows the merchant, the items, the total and the selected card, and nothing happens until the user approves with Face ID, Touch ID or a fingerprint. The card network then issues a payment token, a stand-in card with its own number, security code and expiration date. OpenAI says neither the merchant nor the agent ever receives the real card number. Card rewards and protections for eligible disputes still apply. According to OpenAI's Wallet help page, the feature only works in conversations with a dot and only with credit cards. Debit cards are not supported.

What to check on subscriptions and order confirmations

Approving a purchase does not place the order. OpenAI says the "Ready to check out" status only means the user's approval is complete. Only the merchant's confirmation shows that the order went through, and buying again after an unclear result can lead to a duplicate order. Recurring payments need more attention. If a user agrees to a subscription in the approval dialog, the merchant may store the token and charge it again later, and those charges can only be canceled with the merchant. Removing a card from Wallet only stops new payments through the agent. Existing orders and the stored Wallet data remain.

Merchants can still block or decline purchases made by agents. Many sites already keep AI agents out, as Amazon and several US banks showed in October. OpenAI has published a playbook for merchants that explains how to let signed agent requests through and how to adjust fraud filters. Later, users are supposed to be able to give their dot spending limits, categories or time frames and pre-approve purchases, which would remove the need to approve each one. OpenAI has not said when that will happen.