?What to know:

• Cloudflare announced NET Dollar, a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin for online payments.

• The token is designed to support microtransactions in the "agentic web," driven by artificial intelligence agents.

• CEO Matthew Prince said stablecoin transactions could replace ads and bank transfers as the internet's core business model.

U.S.-listed cloud company Cloudflare (NET) announced plans to intorduve a U.S. dollar stablecoin for what it calls the "agentic web," where autonomous AI agents perform tasks like booking flights or ordering groceries.

The company said on Thursday that the token, dubbed NET Dollar, will enable instant and secure transactions for software agents, developers and creators. Cloudflare framed the initiative as a shift away from the ad-driven economics that have defined the internet for decades.