Advanced · Systems

Agent Protocol Semantics

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

TL;DR. The shared meaning layer of an agent protocol — what messages, verbs, and capability names actually denote.

Technical Definition

The shared meaning layer of an agent protocol — what messages, verbs, and capability names actually denote.

How it works

Transport tells agents how to exchange bytes; semantics tells them what those bytes mean. Protocol semantics fix the message types (request, offer, accept, reject, evidence), the verb vocabulary and its preconditions and effects, error taxonomies, and the identity of resources being referenced. Without an agreed semantic layer, two agents can exchange perfectly valid messages and still disagree about whether an order was placed — the failure mode that ontologies and shared capability vocabularies exist to prevent.

Related Concepts

• Intent Description Language (IDL) — A structured, machine-readable format for expressing what an agent intends to do, for whom, and under what constraints.
• Agent Protocol Dimensions — The distinct axes any agent-to-agent protocol must cover: identity, authorization, transport, semantics, evidence, and lifecycle.
• Agent-to-Agent Intent — A structured statement of purpose one agent sends another so the request can be understood, authorized, and negotiated.
• Agent Capability Vocabulary — A shared, standardized naming scheme for the actions agents can offer and request.