Ant International embeds AI agents across all platforms in biggest-ever product upgrade

Ant International, China's Ant Group's overseas entity, has embarked on a sweeping AI overhaul for its global financial services suite, marking its most substantial product enhancement yet. Dubbed an "AI-native" solution, the upgrade integrates AI agents across all platforms including cross-border payment network Alipay+, merchant services Antom, WorldFirst for account and treasury operations, and digital credit platform Bettr.

The expansive rollout is slated to continue through winter. Ant International's CEO, Peng Yang, underscored the move's significance in positioning global commerce for a "fully agentized future", accentuating the necessity of robust trust infrastructure underpinned by financial AI models and interconnected AI-native solutions. The ambitious upgrade follows an approximately US$1.2 billion series A funding round in July, supported by Ant Group, Alibaba Group Holding, and other investors.

Founded as a standalone entity in 2024, Ant International integrates over 150 million merchants with more than 2 billion consumer accounts, facilitating more than 25 million transactions daily across 210 markets. The vast upgrade spans nearly 100 products, encompassing AI assistants for payment and account management, cash-flow forecasting, currency hedging, global payouts, billing, tax filing, marketing, and credit access tools.

Ant International also unveiled a bespoke business account engineered for AI agents. Gary Liu, CEO of Antom, affirmed that 89.5% of Antom's merchants currently utilize AI agents, with 81.4% of payment tasks benefiting from AI assistance. Liu also emphasized that agent authorization should hinge on task specifics and spending thresholds, rather than employee job titles.

Ant International's AI overhaul hinges on two proprietary systems: the Antom 3-in-1 Transformer, a payment foundation model capable of processing structured records, behavioral sequences, and user-merchant-device relationships to evaluate transactions, and FalconTST, a forecasting model boasting over 93% accuracy in cash flow and currency exposure prediction, thereby cutting corporate hedging and capital allocation costs by 30 to 60% in practical scenarios.

Additionally, a "know-your-agent" (KYA) framework, linked to its Agentic Mobile Protocol, safeguards mobile wallet networks against agent-related risks, incorporating AgentSafePay, a fund-back indemnity against losses from agent-induced vulnerabilities.