---
title: "Agent Identity & Discovery"
description: "identity for the agentic web"
author: Balázs Nemethi
date: 2025-09-01
tags: [AID, v1.1, agent, identity]
---


# Announcing AID: identity for the agentic web

**TL;DR (ELI5):** Type a domain to find its agent, then prove it’s the real one with a quick key-based check.  
> Simple. Trusted. Works today.

## The idea in one sentence

AID is the internet’s address book for agents. Give it a domain, get the right agent endpoint, and optionally verify it with a lightweight cryptographic proof.

## What it solves

* **No discovery glue:** Stop hard-coding endpoints or hunting through docs. One record tells clients where to connect and which protocol to speak.
* **Trust at first contact:** Optional identity proof confirms the server controls the key the domain published. Clear signal for security teams.
* **Works across stacks:** MCP, A2A, gRPC, GraphQL, WebSocket. Same discovery, different protocols.
* **Pragmatic in real orgs:** DNS is ideal. If you cannot touch DNS this week, serve a `.well-known/agent` file while you line up the change.

## Why adopt now

* **Faster integrations:** Any compliant client can discover and connect to your agent automatically.
* **Clear security posture:** Turn on key-based proof for admin or high-trust paths. Rotate keys without breaking clients.
* **Better UX out of the box:** Add a short description, a docs link, and deprecation timelines. Clients can guide users before they connect.

## What you can expect

* **Minimal surface area:** One TXT record. Optional identity.
* **No central registry:** If you control a domain, you can publish today.
* **Stable path forward:** The `_agent` label carries into future versions and tooling.

## Learn more

* **What AID is and why it exists** → [AID rationale](https://aid.agentcommunity.org/rationale)
* **Specification** → [AID specification](https://aid.agentcommunity.org/specification)
* **Identity & PKA, high level** → [identity / pka docs](https://aid.agentcommunity.org/Reference/identity_pka)
* **aid-doctor: validate and generate** → [aid_doctor docs](https://aid.agentcommunity.org/Tooling/aid_doctor)

**Join the Agent Community** to collaborate and ship examples: [agentcommunity.org](https://agentcommunity.org/join)