Silicon Valley startups are about to hand corporate credit cards to AI agents
The typical early-stage startup team used to comprise a pair of founders and a handful of software engineers. Now that founding team is just as likely to include AI agents as it is human employees—and the companies that serve startups are racing to adapt. For Mercury, a popular Silicon Valley banking solution, that shift in team composition has prompted the development of a new feature: AI agent…
Silicon Valley startups are increasingly incorporating AI agents into their founding teams, prompting banking solutions providers to develop new features to accommodate this shift. Mercury, a popular banking platform for startups, has introduced AI agent cards, virtual credit cards that enable businesses to delegate and automate purchasing decisions while providing better controls and auditability.
Mercury's CEO, Immad Akhund, highlights the ability to strike a balance between control and spending capabilities for AI agents. The company has seen a surge in AI startup customers in 2025, with more than twice the number from the previous year. Mercury is expanding its spend management tools with features like budgets, automated accounting, policy enforcement, and integration with its AI assistant, Command.
These new offerings aim to keep Mercury as the preferred bank for growing startups, competing with rivals like Ramp and Brex. Virtual cards for AI agents bridge the gap between traditional payments systems and emerging agentic commerce, providing an efficient solution for day-to-day transactions. Despite limited adoption so far, Mercury's move positions it as a bank of the future for ultralean startup teams.
The company is in the process of obtaining a national bank charter, further solidifying its position in the evolving fintech landscape.
Written by urgent.news from Fast Company's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
