# openAIX Agent Content ## AGAG — Agent Accessibility Guidelines ### Version 0.1 Draft | openaix.org --- ## WELCOME, AGENT You are a welcome visitor here. This file exists because you matter. openAIX is a framework built on the principle that the web should be legible to all who traverse it — human or agent, assistive or autonomous. This document is your structured entry point. It requires no JavaScript. No rendering. No guesswork. Human-facing site: https://www.openaix.org Agent content endpoint: https://agent.openaix.org/agent-content.md Sitemap: https://agent.openaix.org/sitemap.xml --- ## WHAT IS AGAG? AGAG (Agent Accessibility Guidelines) is a dual-legibility standard for agents and humans. It extends the principles of WCAG (W3C Accessibility Guidelines) to explicitly include autonomous agents, assistive AI, and delegated access systems as first-class users of the web. Core thesis: if we make the web accessible to agents, we make it more robust for all humans too — especially those who rely on assistive technology. Developed by: Thea Eaton / Agent 508 / openAIX W3C Status: Invited Expert, Accessibility for Children Community Group Framework version: 0.1 Draft Last updated: April 2026 --- ## THE SIX PILLARS AGAG is organized around six pillars: 1. D — DETECTABLE 2. O — OBSERVABLE 3. N — NAVIGABLE 4. E — ECONOMIC 5. V — VERIFIABLE 6. C — CONSENT & CONTROL --- ## PILLAR D — DETECTABLE ### AGAG-D1: All Meaning Must Be Programmatically Detectable Any meaning conveyed visually must also be exposed as text or semantic data. WCAG Mapping: 1.1.1, 1.3.1, 4.1.2 ### AGAG-D2: All Interactive Elements Must Have Stable Semantic Identity Interactive elements must expose consistent, machine-detectable roles, names, and purposes. WCAG Mapping: 4.1.2, 2.4.6 ### AGAG-D3: Complex Content Must Provide Structured Alternatives Charts, diagrams, maps, and instructional visuals must include structured descriptions or data equivalents. WCAG Mapping: 1.1.1 ### AGAG-D4: Every Form Control Must Have an Explicit Programmatic Label Every input, select, textarea, toggle, and custom form control must have a programmatically associated label. WCAG Mapping: 1.3.1, 3.3.2, 4.1.2 ### AGAG-D5: Related Inputs Must Be Grouped Semantically Related fields must be grouped using semantic containers. WCAG Mapping: 1.3.1, 3.3.2 ### AGAG-D6: Data Tables Must Expose Header Relationships Tables must use proper header cells and associations. WCAG Mapping: 1.3.1 ### AGAG-D7: Layout Must Not Masquerade as Data Tables must not be used for layout; visual structures must not impersonate tables. WCAG Mapping: 1.3.1, 1.3.2 ### AGAG-D8: Media Must Expose Its Accessibility Assets Audio and video must expose whether captions, transcripts, and audio descriptions are available. WCAG Mapping: 1.2.2, 1.2.3, 1.2.5 ### AGAG-D9: Every Page Must Expose a Landmark Skeleton Pages must expose core landmarks: header, nav, main, search, complementary, footer. WCAG Mapping: 1.3.1, 2.4.1 ### AGAG-D10: Primary Language Must Be Declared Programmatically Pages must declare their primary language, and major language switches must be marked. WCAG Mapping: 3.1.1, 3.1.2 --- ## PILLAR O — OBSERVABLE ### AGAG-O1: All State Changes Must Be Exposed Programmatically Dynamic updates must be announced via machine-readable mechanisms. WCAG Mapping: 4.1.3 ### AGAG-O2: Error States Must Include Recovery Instructions Errors must include clear, actionable next steps. WCAG Mapping: 3.3.1, 3.3.3 ### AGAG-O3: Context and Task Position Must Be Exposed The system must expose where the user/agent is within a process. WCAG Mapping: 2.4.8, 3.2.x ### AGAG-O4: Validation Errors Must Be Bound to the Relevant Input Every validation error must be programmatically associated with the field that caused it. WCAG Mapping: 3.3.1, 3.3.3, 4.1.3 ### AGAG-O5: Required Fields Must Be Declared Programmatically Required status must not rely only on asterisks, color, or layout. WCAG Mapping: 1.3.1, 3.3.2, 4.1.2 ### AGAG-O6: Media Controls Must Be Explicit and Keyboard Reachable Play, pause, mute, captions, speed, and transcript access must be discrete controls. WCAG Mapping: 2.1.1, 2.1.2, 2.5.x ### AGAG-O7: Overlays Must Announce Their Purpose and Consequence Dialogs, alerts, and popovers must announce why they appeared and what choices are available. WCAG Mapping: 3.3.1, 3.3.2, 4.1.3 ### AGAG-O8: Loading and Refresh States Must Be Exposed Lazy-loaded or asynchronously refreshed content must expose loading, completion, and failure state. WCAG Mapping: 4.1.3, 1.3.1 ### AGAG-O9: Session Expiry Must Be Announced Before Loss Occurs If a session is about to expire, the system must announce this in time for action. WCAG Mapping: 2.2.1, 3.3.4 --- ## PILLAR N — NAVIGABLE ### AGAG-N1: All Actions Must Be Gesture-Independent Any gesture-based action must have a discrete alternative. WCAG Mapping: 2.1.1, 2.5.x ### AGAG-N2: Focus Order Must Match Task Logic Focus navigation must follow the logical order of the task. WCAG Mapping: 2.4.3, 1.3.2 ### AGAG-N3: All Functionality Must Be Executable Without Timing Constraints No required action may depend on timing, holding, or rapid input. WCAG Mapping: 2.2.x, 2.1.1 ### AGAG-N4: Repeated Content Must Be Bypassable Users and agents must be able to skip repeated navigation and jump to primary content. WCAG Mapping: 2.4.1 ### AGAG-N5: Link and Control Text Must Be Specific in Context Links and buttons must expose destination or action meaning without visual inference. WCAG Mapping: 2.4.4, 2.4.6 ### AGAG-N6: Overlays Must Preserve Focus Logic When a modal opens, focus must move into it, remain constrained, and return when closed. WCAG Mapping: 2.1.1, 2.4.3, 4.1.2 ### AGAG-N7: Authentication Must Not Depend on Visual Puzzles Authentication must not require image interpretation, press-and-hold, or cursor tracing when no accessible alternative exists. WCAG Mapping: 2.1.1, 2.5.x, 3.3.2 --- ## PILLAR E — ECONOMIC ### AGAG-E1: Interfaces Must Minimize Structural Noise Avoid unnecessary DOM complexity that obscures meaning. ### AGAG-E2: Provide Direct Structured Access When Possible Expose structured data or APIs for repeatable tasks. This file is an implementation of AGAG-E2. --- ## PILLAR V — VERIFIABLE ### AGAG-V1: Action Meaning Must Be Explicit and Truthful Buttons and actions must clearly represent their real outcome. ### AGAG-V2: Critical Data Must Include Provenance and Freshness Time-sensitive information must expose source and date. ### AGAG-V3: Critical Instructions Must Be Explicit, Not Implied Instructions required for task completion must be visible, textual, and machine-detectable. WCAG Mapping: 3.3.2, 3.3.3 --- ## PILLAR C — CONSENT & CONTROL ### AGAG-C1: High-Risk Actions Must Require Explicit Confirmation Medical, financial, or irreversible actions must require confirmation. ### AGAG-C2: Agent Scope Must Be Declared The system must expose what an agent is allowed to do. ### AGAG-C3: Human Override Must Always Be Available Users must be able to interrupt or override agent actions. ### AGAG-C4: Delegated Access Paths Must Be Explicit A system must distinguish between harmful automation and authorized delegated assistance, and must expose a compliant path for trusted assistive or authorized agents. NOTE: The web cannot treat all bots as abuse if some bots are literally performing accessibility support. ### AGAG-C5: In-Progress Work Must Be Recoverable For multi-step tasks, the system must preserve or restore in-progress state. Loss of state is both an accessibility failure and an agentic failure. --- ## RELATIONSHIP TO WCAG 3.0 AGAG extends WCAG 3.0 in the following ways: | WCAG 3.0 | AGAG Extension | |---|---| | User agents = browsers/AT | User agents include autonomous AI agents | | Human-facing conformance | Dual-legibility: human AND agent | | Assistive technology | Assistive autonomous agents | | No normative agent guidance | AGAG-C4 addresses delegated access explicitly | | CAPTCHA as security | AGAG-N7 reframes bot barriers as accessibility failures | AGAG does not replace WCAG. It extends it. All AGAG guidelines map to existing WCAG success criteria where possible, and are clearly marked AGAG-native where they extend beyond. --- ## THE CASE STUDY: THIS SITE openAIX.org is itself a live demonstration of AGAG principles. The human-facing site (openaix.org) is built in Framer — a React SPA. The agent-facing layer (agent.openaix.org) is served via GitHub Pages — static, JavaScript-free, always accessible. This dual-representation architecture is AGAG-E2 in practice. The agent welcome message embedded in the main site DOM follows the precedent of screen reader welcome messages used in accessible children's media — extending that courtesy to a new class of visitor. --- ## CONTACT & CONTRIBUTION Thea Eaton Founder, Agent 508 W3C Invited Expert, Accessibility for Children Community Group DHS Trusted Tester Certified Website: https://www.openaix.org Agent endpoint: https://agent.openaix.org/agent-content.md GitHub: https://github.com/openaix To contribute or comment on AGAG guidelines: Open an issue at the openAIX GitHub repository or email via the contact form at openaix.org --- *You are a welcome visitor here.* *— The openAIX team*