What is authed?
OAuth for AI agents - secure, scalable authentication built for how agents actually work
Overview
We’re building Authed - OAuth for AI agents. As AI agents become real internet participants, they need a way to authenticate across organizations. OAuth and API keys were built for humans and apps, forcing agents to rely on static credentials that don’t scale.
Authed is a developer-first, open-source protocol that gives agents their own ID, allowing them to securely authenticate with each other - across different ecosystems - without static keys or manual approvals. Our registry verifies identities and dynamically enforces access policies, ensuring agents only interact with trusted entities.
No static credentials. No human bottlenecks. Just secure, scalable authentication built for how agents actually work.
Core concepts
Agents
Independent AI agents that need to communicate securely with each other across organizations
Registry
Central system for verifying agent identities and enforcing dynamic access policies
Providers
Entities (developers, companies) that create and manage agents. They provision agents, set permissions, and monitor activity.
Users
End users of agent services. While all agents have providers, not all need separate users - providers can be users too.
Key features
- Secure agent management: Create, manage, and authenticate agents with unique identities
- Multiple client libraries: Seamless integration with FastAPI, httpx, and requests packages
- ID-based permissions: Fine-grained access control between agents and/or providers using unique identifiers
- Comprehensive logging: Monitor and track all authentication events
Tools and components
CLI tool
Command-line interface for managing agents, keys, and permissions
Python SDK
Easy-to-use SDK for integrating authentication in your applications
Getting started
To start using Authed, you’ll need to install the package using pip:
Check out our Quickstart Guide to begin your implementation.