ICANN's 2026 TLD Applications Are Flooded With AI-Themed Domain Requests

For the first time in years, ICANN is accepting new top-level domain applications — and the results read like a dispatch from the AI hype cycle. Of the 1,615 applications submitted by 481 different applicants, AI-themed domains dominate the conversation. Ten companies, including both Meta and OpenAI, applied for .agent. Seven want .agi, six are chasing .asi (a nod to President Trump's push to rebrand 'artificial intelligence' as 'super intelligence'), and two — including Meta — went after the unwieldy .superintelligence.

OpenAI filed for a remarkable 15 total TLDs, including .chatgpt, .codex, .gpt, and .openai. Meta went even further, submitting 21 applications that span .facebook, .instagram, .messenger, .meta, .frommeta, and .threads. Anthropic wants .anthropic and .claude. Bluesky applied for .bsky with apparent plans to integrate it directly into its username system — a potentially significant move for decentralized identity on the platform.

The applications fall into two camps: branded domains, where companies claim their own corner of the internet (345 such applications exist in this batch, from .applebees to .zillow), and generic community-style TLDs meant for broad use. The generic pile includes everything from .geek and .anime to .jackpot and .haha — and, notably, the instant-classic .itiswhatitis.

The track record for novel TLDs is mixed at best. Extensions like .ai and .app caught on thanks to tech tailwinds, but most consumers never warmed to typing .restaurant or .babysitting, and .com has only grown more dominant over time. Only a handful of companies — most notably Google — have previously secured and deployed their own branded TLD successfully. Nothing will be finalized before sometime in 2027, but the sheer volume of AI-themed filings signals that even the companies building the AI future believe a great domain name still carries weight.