Agent Identity and Discovery vs DNS for AI Discovery
The map lists them as complementary: sites and agents commonly implement both.
| Agent Identity and Discovery AID | DNS for AI Discovery DNS-AID | |
|---|---|---|
| Lifecycle step | 1 Discover: What is here, and where? | 1 Discover: What is here, and where? |
| Answers | Given a domain, where is the agent and which protocol should I speak, with cryptographic proof the endpoint controls the matching key? | Given a domain, where is its agent endpoint, what protocol does it speak, and how can that be verified via DNSSEC/DANE? |
| Governed by | Agent Community open-source project; editor listed as 'Agent Community'; no formal standards body, though the spec discusses composing with IETF-track work (RFC 9421, RFC 7638, RFC 9728, RFC 8414) | IETF dnsop working group Internet-Draft (individual submission track, not yet WG-adopted) |
| Status (issuer's words) | Current normative specification | Internet-Draft, Standards Track intended status |
| Phase | living | draft |
| Version | v2.1.0 (aid2 wire format; aid1 legacy) (2026-06-01) | draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid-02 (2026-05-27) |
| Form / transport | DNS record | DNS record |
| Found at | _agent.<domain> (DNS TXT); /.well-known/agent (HTTP fallback) | _index._agents.<domain> (SVCB); _agent-name.<domain> (SVCB) |
| Adoption | observed | claimed — Infoblox and GoDaddy joint press release |
| Evidence | 3 verified | 2 verified, 1 reported |
| Primary use case | Let agents discover my API or service | Let agents discover my API or service |
| Last verified | 2026-10-18 (current) | 2026-10-18 (current) |
| Specification | https://raw.githubusercontent.com/agentcommunity/agent-identity-discovery/main/packages/docs/specification.md | https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid/ |
When to use which
- Choose Agent Identity and Discovery when your question is “Given a domain, where is the agent and which protocol should I speak, with cryptographic proof the endpoint controls the matching key?” and you accept its maturity: phase living, adoption observed.
- Choose DNS for AI Discovery when your question is “Given a domain, where is its agent endpoint, what protocol does it speak, and how can that be verified via DNSSEC/DANE?” and you accept its maturity: phase draft, adoption claimed (Infoblox and GoDaddy joint press release).
Read the full articles
- Agent Identity and Discovery: Given a domain, where is the agent and which protocol should I speak, with cryptographic proof the endpoint controls the matching key?
- DNS for AI Discovery: Given a domain, where is its agent endpoint, what protocol does it speak, and how can that be verified via DNSSEC/DANE?