As AI agents become more capable of navigating the internet and completing real tasks, a new startup is stepping in to solve a major gap: how these agents pay for the services they use. Enter Lava Payments, a digital wallet built specifically for the AI-powered web, founded by serial fintech entrepreneur Mitchell Jones.
Jones, who previously co-founded the Y Combinator-backed startup Lendtable, got the idea for Lava while experimenting with AI tools. He quickly became frustrated by the fragmented, repetitive process of building agent-driven apps.
“I was using the same models, but had to sign up for different platforms, start new subscriptions, re-authenticate, and pay separately each time even though I was already paying for the core model,” Jones told TechCrunch. “That felt fundamentally broken.”
What he wanted was simple: a single wallet, one pool of credits, and the flexibility to move between tools without starting over every time. That idea became Lava.
Lava Payments offers a usage-based digital wallet that enables AI agents or users acting on their behalf to pay across multiple tools and services with one set of credits. Merchants can accept Lava, and users can preload funds into their Lava wallet. From there, agents can use those credits to pay for services from any participating merchant or platform, including foundational models like GPT and Claude, without interrupting workflows or asking for constant transaction approvals.
Related: Uzbekistan’s First Unicorn,Uzum Hits $1.5B Valuation After New Round Led by Tencent
“Without Lava, agents can’t move smoothly across the web. They get blocked at checkout,” Jones explained. He likens Lava to the way consumers already pay for internet access. “You don’t pay Google every time you open Google Maps. You’ve already paid Verizon or AT&T. That’s how we want Lava to work for the AI web.”
On Wednesday, Lava announced a $5.8 million seed round led by Lerer Hippeau. Other investors include Harlem Capital, Streamlined Ventures, and Westbound. The funds will be used to grow the team, build out the platform, and launch go-to-market efforts.
Jones’ connection to lead investor Will McKelvey, his former high school classmate, turned VC helped catalyze the round. “Will’s been following my journey for years. Lava was the right moment to finally work together,” Jones said.
While other players like Metronome are also exploring payments for AI tools, Jones sees Lava as being uniquely focused on the emerging agent-native economy, where AI agents transact autonomously on behalf of users.
Jones’ motivation is deeply personal. Raised in a working-class family in Dayton, Ohio, he was taught the classic formula for success: work hard, save, get a good education. He did just that earning a degree from Yale, working at Goldman Sachs and Meta, and founding fintech startups like Parable and Lendtable.
Now, with Lava, he wants to make AI tools more accessible and seamless not just for big enterprises, but for everyday users.
“We want to be the invisible layer that powers the AI web,” Jones said. “AI should be something anyone can use, even a kid from Dayton like me.”
