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    "headline": "India Prepares AI Agent Payments on UPI Without Approval",
    "dek": "India is preparing a framework allowing AI agents to make small UPI payments without transaction approval.",
    "prose": "India is preparing a framework that would let AI agents make small digital payments without approval for every transaction. [^1]\n\nThe value of transactions processed through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in India reached a record level of Rs 29.82 lakh crore in August 2026. [^2]\n\nThe proposed framework utilizes the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) system for these autonomous agent transactions. [^3]\n\nThe system is designed to remove the requirement for manual approval for every single small transaction made by AI agents. [^4]\n\nThe total transaction volume for UPI reached an all-time high of 24.51 billion transactions in August 2026. [^5]\n\nThis record value represents a 20% annual growth compared to Rs 24.85 lakh crore recorded in August 2025. [^6]\n\nThree sources familiar with the matter provided this information to Reuters on September 1. [^7]",
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      "thread_label": "Unified Payments Interface",
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