Cisco Donates AGNTCY Project to Linux Foundation to Standardize AI Agent Communication

The Linux Foundation, the world's leading home for open source collaboration, has welcomed a new major AI agent infrastructure project. Cisco has donated the AGNTCY project (pronounced "agency") to the Linux Foundation, reinforcing the foundation's role in fostering vendor-neutral, community-driven AI technologies. Google recently donated the Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol to the Linux Foundation, which enables AI agents to communicate and collaborate across different platforms and frameworks. Now, AGNTCY joins this ecosystem as another critical piece of AI agent infrastructure under neutral governance.

What is AGNTCY?

AGNTCY started as an open source infrastructure for AI agent communication in March 2025. It aims to provide a standardized, vendor-neutral way for AI agents to discover, authenticate, communicate, and collaborate with each other regardless of the platform or vendor. Dell Technologies, Google Cloud, Oracle, and Red Hat have joined Cisco as formative members of the AGNTCY project under the Linux Foundation umbrella. This move ensures that no single vendor controls the direction or development of this important infrastructure.

Key Components of AGNTCY

AGNTCY tackles the challenge of AI agent interoperability with four main components:

• Discovery System: Functions like DNS for AI agents, enabling them to find each other across networks.
• Identity Layer: Handles authentication between different organizations to ensure secure communication.
• Messaging Protocol (SLIM): A protocol designed for efficient and reliable communication between AI agents.
• Observability Tools: Provide evaluation and debugging capabilities across multi-agent workflows to ensure smooth collaboration.
These components work together to enable AI agents from different companies to communicate seamlessly, overcoming current fragmentation where each vendor uses proprietary protocols and authentication methods.

Compatibility and Open Source

AGNTCY is compatible with the Agent2Agent protocol and Anthropic's Model Context Protocol (MCP), promoting interoperability across existing AI agent communication standards. The project's source code is openly available on GitHub, encouraging community contributions and transparency.

Statement from Cisco

Vijoy Pandey, SVP and GM at Outshift by Cisco, emphasized the importance of community ownership:

Building the foundational infrastructure for the Internet of Agents requires community ownership, not vendor control. The Linux Foundation ensures this critical infrastructure remains neutral and accessible to everyone building multi-agent systems.

Conclusion

The donation of AGNTCY to the Linux Foundation marks a significant step toward standardizing AI agent communication in a vendor-neutral way. This initiative promises to accelerate the development of interoperable AI ecosystems where agents can collaborate seamlessly, regardless of their origin.

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Source: CISCO Giften AGNTCY Project to Linux Foundation to Standardize AI Agent Communication on July 31, 2025

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

About AGNTCY

Q: What is the primary goal of the AGNTCY project? A: The primary goal of AGNTCY is to create a standardized, vendor-neutral infrastructure for AI agents to discover, authenticate, communicate, and collaborate. Q: Who are the formative members of the AGNTCY project? A: The formative members include Cisco, Dell Technologies, Google Cloud, Oracle, and Red Hat. Q: Why is vendor neutrality important for AI agent communication infrastructure? A: Vendor neutrality ensures that the development and direction of the infrastructure are not controlled by a single entity, promoting wider adoption and preventing proprietary lock-in.

AGNTCY Components

Q: What does the Discovery System in AGNTCY do? A: The Discovery System acts like DNS for AI agents, enabling them to find each other across networks. Q: How does AGNTCY handle secure communication between AI agents from different organizations? A: AGNTCY uses an Identity Layer to handle authentication between different organizations, ensuring secure communication. Q: What is the purpose of the SLIM messaging protocol within AGNTCY? A: SLIM is a messaging protocol specifically designed for efficient and reliable communication between AI agents. Q: What role do Observability Tools play in AGNTCY? A: Observability Tools provide capabilities for evaluating and debugging multi-agent workflows, ensuring smooth collaboration.

Compatibility and Open Source

Q: Is AGNTCY compatible with other AI agent communication protocols? A: Yes, AGNTCY is compatible with the Agent2Agent protocol and Anthropic's Model Context Protocol (MCP). Q: Where can I find the source code for AGNTCY? A: The source code for AGNTCY is openly available on GitHub.

Crypto Market AI's Take

The donation of the AGNTCY project to the Linux Foundation signifies a crucial step towards fostering interoperability and standardization in the rapidly evolving landscape of AI agents. At Crypto Market AI, we are deeply invested in the intersection of artificial intelligence and finance, recognizing that the seamless communication and collaboration of AI agents will be foundational for future financial technologies. Our platform leverages AI for sophisticated market analysis and trading strategies, and we understand the critical need for robust, open-source infrastructure that allows these agents to interact efficiently and securely. This initiative aligns with our vision of creating an accessible and advanced financial ecosystem, and we see projects like AGNTCY as vital enablers for the next generation of AI-driven financial services. You can explore our own advancements in AI Agents for Trading and learn more about how AI is shaping the future of finance in our AI Crypto Market Platform.

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