PANews reported on May 29th that Erik Reppel, Coinbase's Head of Engineering and founder of the x402 protocol, announced on the X platform that he has left Coinbase to start a new company. Erik will continue to participate in the x402 protocol as a member of the foundation's technical steering committee and will serve as an advisor to Coinbase on agency business. Yuga Kohler will succeed him as Coinbase's Head of Engineering.