Agent Network Protocol
08 agent-communication/Community / OSS/ACTIVE/aka ANP
Agent Network Protocol (ANP) is an open spec for a decentralized web of agents — DID-based identity, capability description, and peer-to-peer agent messaging without a central directory.
What it does
- 01Decentralized DID identity
- 02Capability description format
- 03Meta-protocol negotiation
- 04Peer-to-peer messaging
- 05Open spec (Apache-2.0)
Who it's for
Experiments in decentralized agent networks where no central directory or vendor should sit in the middle.
Pricing
Open protocol (free). List prices as checked against the vendor's pricing page on 2026-09-25; plans change often, so confirm before deciding.
caveat · before you adopt
Research-grade adoption: smaller ecosystem and fewer production deployments than A2A.
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Frequently asked
What is Agent Network Protocol?
Agent Network Protocol (ANP) is an open spec for a decentralized web of agents — DID-based identity, capability description, and peer-to-peer agent messaging without a central directory.
Who is Agent Network Protocol for?
Experiments in decentralized agent networks where no central directory or vendor should sit in the middle.
How much does Agent Network Protocol cost?
Open protocol (free). List prices as checked against the vendor's pricing page on 2026-09-25; plans change often, so confirm before deciding.
Does Agent Network Protocol run locally or in the cloud?
Agent Network Protocol runs locally on your machine and in the vendor's cloud. Its interfaces are an API or protocol.
What are alternatives to Agent Network Protocol?
Other agent communication platform entries in the catalog: OpenScout / Scout, A2A Protocol, AGNTCY, NANDA, BeeAI, CrewAI, Microsoft Agent Framework, LangGraph, MetaGPT, CAMEL, Agency Swarm, OpenAI Agents SDK. Different categories solve the same problem differently — see the Agent communication & collaboration category page for tradeoffs.
What should I know before adopting Agent Network Protocol?
Research-grade adoption: smaller ecosystem and fewer production deployments than A2A.