The launches put customer convenience at the centre of UPI’s next phase. Beyond transaction speed, payment providers are increasingly being judged on how smoothly users can pay, follow up on problems and get help when something goes wrong.

With Tap & Pay, a customer can hold a smartphone against a merchant’s payment terminal instead of scanning a QR code. The feature relies on Near Field Communication, or NFC, also used for contactless card payments. A phone need not have mobile internet for this to work, provided the merchant terminal has connectivity.

MyUPI uses an artificial intelligence assistant built on the FiMI model. It is intended to let customers enquire about payment status and register complaints without contacting a human support agent. The aim is quicker, more accurate assistance linked to transactions.

For merchants, a simpler checkout does not remove the work behind payments. Airpay’s Kunal Jhunjhunwala highlighted the continuing need to reconcile records and resolve unsuccessful transactions. He also stressed that AI support needs to sit within the payment application, rather than in a separate chat interface that users struggle to locate.

Experts at Wise see international payments as a further opportunity for this approach. Making overseas purchases feel as straightforward as local payments remains a goal, with speed, transparency and confidence in money safety all important.