.agent and .agi seem poised to become the next hot domains

Meta description: ICANN has received 1,615 applications from 481 applicants for new top-level domains, including AI names such as .agent, .agi, and .asi. This is the first round.

Tags: ICANN, top-level domains, domain names, AI branding, URL suffixes

Featured image: Abstract technology-style illustration of network nodes, URL paths, and domain suffixes, with no real people, company logos, or text.

ICANN new top-level domains are back in the center of web-address design after the organization announced 1,615 applications from 481 different applicants. This is the first time in years that ICANN has opened a new application window for top-level domains, and the current pool shows how much of the naming competition has shifted toward artificial intelligence.

Background: The URL Suffix as a Naming Layer

A top-level domain is the final segment of a web address, such as .com, .org, or .net. ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, coordinates the global domain-name system, so new suffixes can create additional address space for businesses, communities, and technology movements. For website operators, the value of a new suffix is practical: a shorter, more descriptive ending can help a product, brand, or service stand out in a crowded web.

The practical stakes are highest for companies whose products are named after common words. A suffix can reinforce a brand, but it can also create confusion if multiple applicants choose similar terms. That is why the application totals, rather than the final approved list, are the first clear signal of demand.

Development: AI Names Move Into the Foreground

The latest applications are heavily shaped by artificial intelligence. Ten different companies, including both Meta and OpenAI, applied for .agent. That suffix aligns with the growing use of "agent" in AI products to describe software that can plan, act, and complete tasks with less step-by-step human direction.

Seven applications, including OpenAI, are attached to .agi, while six applications, also including OpenAI, are attached to .asi. The overlap shows that major AI organizations are not waiting for a single industry standard to emerge. They are exploring multiple possible endings for the same conceptual territory, from agent-based automation to broader advanced-intelligence branding.

Latest Progress: 1,615 Applications, 481 Applicants

ICANN’s announcement makes the scale of demand clear. The 1,615 applications come from 481 different applicants, which means the pool contains more proposals than organizations and that some applicants submitted multiple suffix ideas. The original report also trails off while mentioning President Tru …, a sign that new domain applications can follow commercial and cultural naming trends as well as technology trends.

For readers, the immediate takeaway is not that these suffixes are already live. The event is still an application count. The meaningful detail is who is applying and what they are trying to own: Meta and OpenAI both appear in the .agent list, while OpenAI appears in the .agi and .asi counts as well.

Current Stage: A Naming Window for AI and Identity

The process is now at the stage where ICANN has reported the intake totals, not the approved outcomes. The confirmed numbers are 1,615 applications and 481 applicants, with .agent attracting ten companies including Meta and OpenAI, .agi attracting seven including OpenAI, and .asi attracting six including OpenAI. The next thing to watch is how these AI-heavy proposals move through evaluation and whether the final set of new suffixes gives the web a distinct naming layer for AI products, agents, and related services.