Governance
Governance for the .agent community is actively being designed. The formal governance framework will be published soon. What follows are the principles guiding that work.
The principle
The people building and using agents should decide how the namespace works — not a single company's board.
We're designing a governance model that ensures every policy, standard, and safety guideline goes through community process. No backroom deals, no unilateral changes.
Charter
The community charter is the foundational document that defines our mission, values, and commitments.
What's being designed
Working groups
Focused teams that own specific areas. Anyone can join.
| Group | Focus |
|---|---|
| Discovery | AID spec, DNS-based agent resolution, protocol design |
| Verification | Trust signals, agent authentication, reputation systems |
| Safety | Abuse prevention, content policies, dispute resolution |
| Tooling | SDKs, reference implementations, developer experience |
Working groups will propose standards. The community reviews and ratifies them.
Community decision-making
The governance framework is being designed around:
- Registration policies — who can get a
.agentname, pricing tiers, reserved names - Safety standards — what agents must comply with to keep their name
- Dispute resolution — how conflicts over names get resolved
- Grant allocation — how community funds support open source work
Transparent process
Everything in the open:
- All proposals public on GitHub
- Discussion on GitHub Discussions and Discord
- Meeting notes published
- Voting records public
Community vs. registrar
Two separate roles, by design:
| Role | |
|---|---|
| agentcommunity.org | Governance, standards, working groups, policy |
| Registrar (future) | Technical operations — DNS, registration portal, billing |
The community sets the rules. The registrar executes them. This separation ensures operational decisions don't override community policy.
Founding membership
Early members get a direct role in shaping .agent before it launches:
- Policy voting rights — vote on standards and registration rules
- Working group access — join task forces on discovery, verification, safety
- Priority reservation windows — signal the names you want before general availability
- Public recognition — founding supporters are credited in ICANN filings and community showcases
No fees. No binding contracts. Just participation.
Follow the progress
The governance framework is being developed in the open:
- Governance repo — charter, policies, and framework as they evolve
- Discord — real-time discussion on governance design
Want a seat at the table? Join the community or start contributing.