AIX — the AI Interchange Standard — defines a common envelope, naming convention, behavioral mode vocabulary, and composable schema patterns so generative AI tools, agents, and applications can exchange data without glue code.
Developers don’t have time for schema minutiae. AIX does the homework — field names, object shapes, behavior flags, metadata, versioning — so your team can ship instead of inventing vocabulary.
§ 1 — The problem
The generative AI ecosystem produced hundreds of specialized tools — each with its own API format, authentication method, response structure, and naming vocabulary. The result is friction at every seam.
try / except.
first_name vs givenName vs fn.
system_prompt vs systemPrompt vs sp.
Teams burn cycles arguing about names that should already be settled.
§ 2 — The envelope
Every AIX request and response wraps the same five-block envelope. Versioned by the
aix field. Provider, model, latency, cost, and tokens live in predictable
places, so logs and dashboards can read every provider the same way.
Same shape, every provider, every task type. See Example C for the envelope rendered as live JSON.
§ 3 — Standards pillars
Each pillar is drawn directly from the Draft 2.2 specification. Together they cover how AI systems should name, exchange, behave, and evolve.
Field names use camelCase, full English words, and a strict four-part hierarchy: {component}_{objectType}_{identifier}_{property}. Every new key must pass six validation tests before it joins the canonical registry.
sp, or, liUrlEvery AIX message wraps a uniform task/input/output/meta/error structure. Versioned via the aix field. Provider, model, latency, cost, tokens, and retention sit in predictable places, so logs, dashboards, and comparison tools can read every provider the same way.
MCP defines what an agent can access. AIX defines how it behaves. The behavioralMode field declares the agent’s current operating posture — at the protocol level, queryable by orchestration layers and other agents.
Mode transitions must be explicit. Agents do not self-promote.
When a system needs multiple instances of the same conceptual thing, model it as a typed collection with a controlled vocabulary — not enumerated fields. AIX 2.2’s media[] array is the reference pattern: one shape, many surfaces, extensible without spec churn.
type field with controlled vocabname / labelThe output of one AIX task becomes the input of the next via ${step_id.output.field} substitution. Research, write, synthesize voice — declarative steps, comparable metadata, no bespoke piping per pipeline.
Minor versions are additive. Ratified keys are never renamed — only deprecated alongside a replacement. Amendments follow a controlled process: propose, run all six validation tests, check conflicts, ratify into the canonical reference.
§ 4 — In code
Two everyday decisions, settled by the standard so you don’t have to debate them in your next stand-up.
Example A · Modeling multiple media surfaces
{
"givenName": "Jane",
"familyName": "Smith",
"mediumNewsletter": "Compounding",
"mediumBlog": null,
"mediumYtChannel": null,
"mediumTiktok": null,
"mediumPodcast": null,
"mediumPlatform": "Patternwork Studio"
}Every new surface forces a spec amendment, a UI input, and a migration. 90% of fields stay null.
{
"givenName": "Jane",
"familyName": "Smith",
"media": [
{
"mediumType": "newsletter",
"mediumName": "Compounding",
"mediumTagline": "What gets better with time, before everyone notices.",
"mediumUrl": "https://compoundingnotes.com",
"isPrimary": true
},
{
"mediumType": "platform",
"mediumName": "Patternwork Studio",
"mediumUrl": "https://patternwork.studio"
}
]
}One typed collection. Controlled vocabulary on mediumType. Extensible without spec churn.
Example B · Declaring how an agent behaves
{
"aix": "2.2",
"agent": {
"id": "rosie",
"role": "chief_of_staff",
"behavioralMode": "observer",
"allowedModes": ["observer", "orchestrator", "briefing", "off"]
}
}Mode is declared, not inferred. Orchestration layers and downstream agents can read it. Transitions are explicit.
Example C · The envelope, every task
{
"aix": "2.2",
"id": "uuid-v4",
"timestamp": "2026-04-19T09:00:00Z",
"task": { "type": "content_authoring", "provider": "anthropic", "model": "claude-sonnet-4" },
"input": { "author": { "givenName": "Jane", "familyName": "Smith" } },
"output": { },
"meta": {
"cost": { "amount": 0.018, "currency": "USD" },
"latency": { "totalMs": 8400 },
"tokens": { "input": 4200, "output": 1850, "total": 6050 },
"agentMode": "orchestrator"
}
}§ 5 — Why developers care
The decisions teams normally fight about — field names, object shapes, behavior flags, metadata structure, versioning policy — are already settled in the spec. You inherit them.
givenName not first_name. linkedinUrl not liUrl. The naming convention is decided; move on.
Conform to the envelope once and any AIX-compliant provider is swappable. Workflows chain without bespoke piping.
Agents declare behavioralMode. Orchestration layers read it. No more “did the agent decide to email the customer on its own?”
Composable collections + additive versioning means new surfaces and new modes extend the standard — not break it.
Cost, latency, and token counts live in the same place in every response. Build dashboards once.
AIX uses Schema.org canonical names where they exist and only extends where the web vocabulary stops. You’re not learning a new universe.
§ 6 — Specification
An open standard authored under Apache 2.0. Heritage in CrossARM (2014). Built on a Schema.org base with AIX extensions where the web’s vocabulary doesn’t reach.
Version
2.2 Draft
License
Apache 2.0
Heritage
CrossARM (2014)
Base vocabulary
Schema.org
Validation
JSON Schema
Complement
MCP-friendly
§ 7 — Adopt the standard
Skim §1–§4 for the foundations. Read §7 (envelope) and §4.7 (modes) before implementing. The draft is on GitHub under Apache 2.0.
github.com/aix-standard/aix-specWrap your existing AI calls in the AIX task / input / output / meta / error shape. Stable across providers. Comparable on metadata.
Run new field names through Stranger, Hierarchy, Abbreviation, Case, Redundancy, and Conflict tests before they ship. Catch debt at the keyboard.
Read the naming pillarHave a task type, mode, or registry entry the spec is missing? Propose it. AIX’s amendment process is open and additive — minor versions are guaranteed backward-compatible.
Open the proposal form →“AIX field keys should be semantically stable — they describe what kind of thing the data is, not where it lives.”
AIX is an open standard. Use it, extend it, or propose amendments. The full Draft 2.2 spec is one page away.
Questions or amendments? Use the proposal form →