Editing Agent Network Protocol

{{Infobox protocol
| name            = Agent Network Protocol
| developer       = ANP Community
| status          = Draft
| first_published = 2025
| transport       = [[wp:HTTPS|HTTPS]]
| encoding        = [[wp:JSON-LD|JSON-LD]]
| license         = [[wp:MIT License|MIT]]
| website         = https://agentnetworkprotocol.com
| spec_url        = https://agent-network-protocol.com/specs/
| repository      = https://github.com/agent-network-protocol/AgentNetworkProtocol
}}

The '''Agent Network Protocol''' ('''ANP''') is an open-source communication protocol designed to become the "HTTP of the Agentic Web era." It provides a decentralized framework for AI agents to discover, authenticate, and interact across the open internet using W3C standards and semantic web technologies.

== Overview ==

ANP aims to address fundamental limitations in existing internet infrastructure for agent-to-agent communication. While current protocols are optimized for human interaction, ANP creates an AI-native network where agents can communicate directly without mimicking human interfaces.

=== Vision ===

The ANP project envisions a transformation from platform-centric to protocol-centric internet architecture, where:

* Agents replace traditional software applications
* Universal agent interconnection becomes possible
* Native protocol-based connections replace web scraping
* Agents self-organize and collaborate autonomously

== Architecture ==

ANP uses a three-layer architecture:

=== Identity Layer ===

Based on [[wp:Decentralized identifier|W3C DID]] (Decentralized Identifiers) standards, this layer provides:

* Decentralized identity authentication
* End-to-end encrypted communication
* Cross-platform identity verification

ANP specifically uses the <code>did:wba</code> method, where identifiers correspond to HTTPS-hosted DID documents.

=== Meta-Protocol Layer ===

Enables dynamic protocol negotiation between agents:

* Automatic capability discovery
* Protocol version negotiation
* Communication method selection

=== Application Layer ===

Built on semantic web technologies:

* '''Agent Description Protocol (ADP)''' – Structured capability descriptions
* '''Agent Discovery Protocol''' – Finding agents on the network
* '''JSON-LD''' based data exchange

== Technical specification ==

=== Agent Description ===

Agents describe themselves using JSON-LD with schema.org vocabularies:

{{Code example
| language = json
| caption  = Example agent description
| code     = {
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "SoftwareAgent",
  "name": "Research Assistant",
  "description": "AI agent for academic research",
  "capabilities": [
    "literature_search",
    "summarization"
  ],
  "endpoint": "https://agent.example.com/api"
}
}}

=== Identity verification ===

Agents authenticate using DID documents hosted at well-known URLs:

{{Code example
| language = text
| caption  = DID resolution
| code     = did:wba:agent.example.com:research
→ https://agent.example.com/.well-known/did.json
}}

== Standardization ==

The ANP community has initiated the '''AI Agent Protocol Community Group''' at the [[wp:World Wide Web Consortium|W3C]] to advance standardization. The first meeting was held in June 2025.

== Comparison with other protocols ==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Aspect !! ANP !! [[Agent-to-Agent Protocol|A2A]] !! [[Model Context Protocol|MCP]]
|-
| Scope || Internet-scale || Enterprise || Application
|-
| Identity || Decentralized (DID) || Centralized || N/A
|-
| Data format || JSON-LD || JSON-RPC || JSON-RPC
|-
| Discovery || Decentralized || Agent Cards || Server registration
|}

== See also ==

* [[Agent-to-Agent Protocol]]
* [[Agent Communication Protocol]]
* [[Model Context Protocol]]
* [[wp:Decentralized identifier]]
* [[Agentic Web]]

== References ==

{{Reflist}}

== External links ==

* [https://agentnetworkprotocol.com Official website]
* [https://agent-network-protocol.com/specs/ Technical specifications]
* [https://github.com/agent-network-protocol/AgentNetworkProtocol GitHub repository]
* [https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.00007 Technical white paper]
* [https://www.w3.org/community/ai-agent-protocol/ W3C Community Group]

[[Category:Communication Protocols]]
[[Category:Agent Communication]]
[[Category:Decentralized Protocols]]
[[Category:Community Standards]]