We could have sentient machine shoppers soon: The rise of connected devices and decentralized payment systems could soon allow our devices to shop for us, experts tell the Wall Street Journal.

Skeptical about letting your devices make your purchase decisions on your behalf? Picture this. A smart fridge that knows you’re about to run out of milk, and puts in an order. The ink in your printer is about to run dry but your machine knows how to purchase a new one — and where to get the best price. Or a car that automatically pays your parking ticket for you.

Welcome to the Internet of Things: The tns of interconnected devices that will soon be monitoring, collecting and storing data about our world, and the increasing sophistication of digital payment systems, will enable us to delegate our purchasing decisions to the machines.

Machines talking to machines: The current explosion of IoT technology was put into perspective last year by Cisco, which predicted that by 2023 some 50% of all connections in the world will be between two machines. By the same time, the number of connected devices will be three times larger than the global population, roughly equal to 3.6 devices per person.

Data monetization will increasingly work both ways: As more devices go online and communicate with one another, tech companies may look to outsource data collection to the masses in return for income. Jaguar Land Rover has already tried this in a pilot program two years ago, handing out parking credits to drivers who shared traffic updates and data about the roads.

The infrastructure to support this is currently being tested: A value transfer protocol called IOTA was developed to facilitate micropayments between IoT devices. The protocol is currently being tested in Norway as part of a project funded by the EU.

It’s unlikely existing networks can handle this influx of mns of IoT payments, according to analysts. But decentralized payment systems using blockchain technology could provide an alternative. JPMorgan Chase blockchain unit Onyx recently tested blockchain payments between two orbiting satellites, opening the door to data-for-money transactions in space.