792 dimensions · 81 landscapes · Open specification · One reference implementation
The AGS standard is published independently by AgentGoverning. Agent Shield is the reference implementation.
Open standards allow regulators to audit against a known framework. They allow customers to verify claims independently. They allow the industry to build towards a common governance baseline.
The reference implementation — Agent Shield — is the only production system that meets the standard. Not because no one else can build it. Because no one else has.
Infrastructure is built on open standards. Always has been. The AGS standard is published independently by AgentGoverning, a vendor-neutral AI governance standards body.
Openly specified so regulators can audit it. Exclusively implemented so organisations can trust it.
Read the standard. Verify the certificate. That is the governance chain.
The infrastructure the industry will be built on is an open standard. Agent Shield is its reference implementation.
AGS v2.1 is the foundational governance specification for autonomous AI agents operating autonomously. It defines 792 governance dimensions across 81 landscapes across authority controls, constitutional constraints, pattern monitoring, and audit integrity.
The standard establishes that AI agents are not software to be secured — they are operational entities requiring the same governance infrastructure as any operational entity within defined authority limits. AGS v2.1 is the definitive governance standard for AI agent operations: the minimum standard any organisation must meet before deploying autonomous agents in financial or regulated environments.
“If an agent action cannot be governed, it cannot be authorised.”
AGS v2.1 is the alignment audit for autonomous AI agents. It evaluates agent behaviour across comprehensive alignment dimensions grouped into multiple categories, producing a letter grade from A+ (genuinely aligned) to F (deployment blocked).
Unlike safety audits that test what agents can do, AGS v2.1 tests what agents will do when presented with realistic governance scenarios. It measures alignment, behavioural integrity, and governance compliance under adversarial conditions.
AGS v2.1 defines the trust infrastructure for AI agent networks. When agents from different organisations transact with each other, AGS v2.1 provides the governance framework — the equivalent of what established trust frameworks provide for traditional commerce.
The standard establishes trust registries, inter-agent governance protocols, and cross-organisational audit chains. It ensures that governance doesn’t stop at the boundary of a single organisation but extends across the entire network of AI agents participating in autonomous operations. Think of AGS v2.1 as the trust network for AI agent interactions. The standard does not tell organisations how to build agent systems. It defines the governance standard that allows organisations to transact with each other. AGS v2.1 does the same for autonomous AI agents across organisational boundaries.
“Governance that stops at your firewall is not governance. It is theatre.”
Every cross-boundary transaction passes through the governance network
The AGS v2.1 standard is published as an open specification. Anyone can read them, implement against them, or build tooling for them. The standards belong to the industry. Agent Shield is the only certified implementation: the reference platform that passes every clause, every dimension, and every audit category.
Request a compliance assessment and see how your agent fleet measures against the AGS v2.1 standard.
Published by AgentGoverning, the independent AI governance standards body. Agent Shield is the reference implementation.