Advanced · Systems

Agent Identity Protocol (AIP)

Visual diagram · (in preparation) · Math · (in preparation) · Worked example · 3 difficulty levels.

TL;DR. A protocol for establishing and proving an AI agent's identity to other agents, services, and users.

Technical Definition

A protocol for establishing and proving an AI agent's identity to other agents, services, and users.

How it works

An Agent Identity Protocol standardizes how an agent asserts identity and how a relying party verifies it. It defines the identifier format (often a decentralized identifier or a service-issued principal), the key material and signing scheme, the handshake used to prove possession of that key, and the claim set carried alongside — operator, model version, deployment environment. AIP deliberately answers only 'who is this?'; permissions are handled by a separate authorization protocol so identity can remain stable while authority changes.

Related Concepts

• Agent Passport System (APS) — A scheme that issues verifiable, portable identity documents to AI agents so other systems can recognise and trust them across domains.
• Agent Authorization Protocol (AAP) — A protocol that determines which actions an authenticated agent is permitted to perform, on whose behalf, and within what limits.
• Agent Identity — The verifiable answer to 'which agent is this?' — a stable, attestable identifier distinct from the human or service behind it.
• Agent Trust — The calibrated confidence a system or person places in an agent, grounded in verified identity, bounded authority, and observed behaviour.