Stablecoin protocol USD.AI, which provides credit to artificial intelligence (AI) companies, has raised $13 million in Series A funding led by Framework Ventures.

USD.AI, developed by Permian Labs, issues loans to emerging AI firms using graphics processing unit (GPU) hardware as collateral, cutting approval times by more than 90% compared with traditional lenders. The on-chain system includes USDai, a dollar-pegged token, and sUSDai, a yield-bearing version backed by income-generating compute assets.

GPUs are fundamental hardware to AI processes through performing the many calculations at once required to make the process of training and using AI models much faster.

CEO David Choi said USD.AI's model “treats GPUs like commodities,” enabling fast, programmatic loan approvals without conventional gatekeeping, in an announcement shared with CoinDesk on Thursday.

Framework’s Vance Spencer likened AI’s capital demands to the “oil boom” and said USD.AI could democratize access to funding while offering investors yield tied to AI sector growth.

With $50 million already in deposits during private beta, USD.AI plans a public launch featuring an ICO and a game-based allocation model.

USD.AI may represent the potential of a convergence between stablecoins, which have been at the forefront of the regulatory advancements in digital assets, and AI which has rapidly ascended to mainstream adoption in recent years.

Together, the two could create a more intelligent and efficient financial system. This synergy allows AI agents to transact autonomously and reliably using a stable currency, enhancing financial automation, security, and risk management across various applications from payments to decentralized finance.