Kite AI Soars with $18 Million in PayPal-Led Funding to Build the Future of the “Agentic Web”

San Francisco, CA – Kite AI, a pioneering infrastructure company, has successfully closed an $18 million Series A funding round. The investment was co-led by PayPal Ventures and General Catalyst, with notable participation from other prominent investors including 8VC, Samsung Next, and Alumni Ventures.

This latest round of funding brings Kite AI’s total capital raised to $33 million, signaling strong investor confidence in its vision to build the foundational trust layer for the emerging “agentic web.”​Formerly known as Zettablock, Kite AI is dedicated to creating a new digital landscape where autonomous AI agents can seamlessly and securely interact with each other and the digital world.

The company’s core mission is to solve the critical challenges of identity, trust, and programmable payments in a world increasingly populated by intelligent, autonomous software.​At the heart of Kite AI’s innovation is Kite AIR (Agent Identity Resolution), a groundbreaking solution that empowers AI agents to authenticate, transact, and operate independently. This technology provides a framework for verifiable digital identities for AI agents, enabling them to securely access and exchange value across various platforms.​A key focus for Kite AI is the integration of its technology with leading commerce platforms.

The company has already initiated pilot programs with e-commerce giant Shopify and payments leader PayPal. These integrations will allow AI-powered shopping agents to be discoverable by merchants, conduct transactions using stablecoins, and operate with a high degree of autonomy and security.​Alan Du, a partner at PayPal Ventures, lauded Kite AI’s approach, stating that the company is “the first real infrastructure that is purpose-built for the agentic economy.”

He emphasized that Kite AI is addressing a significant technical gap in the market by providing a stablecoin-based, near-instantaneous settlement solution for AI-driven transactions.​The concept of the “agentic web” envisions a future where swarms of AI agents perform a multitude of tasks on behalf of users, from simple transactions to complex workflows.

Kite AI’s infrastructure, built on a highly performant blockchain, is designed to handle the high volume of micro-transactions that will characterize this new era of the internet. By establishing a robust framework for trust and verifiable transactions,

Kite AI is paving the way for a more intelligent, automated, and efficient digital world.

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