{
  "dataset": "protocols",
  "record": {
    "id": "llms-txt",
    "name": "llms.txt",
    "full_name": "llms.txt",
    "layer": "discovery",
    "creator": "Jeremy Howard (Answer.AI)",
    "status": "widely adopted (~10% of studied sites)",
    "year": 2024,
    "one_liner": "A markdown file at the domain root that gives language models a curated map of a site's most important content.",
    "spec_url": "https://llmstxt.org",
    "snippet": "# Site Name\\n> One-line description.\\n## Core\\n- [Page](/page.md): what it is",
    "abbreviation": "llms.txt",
    "also_known_as": [
      "/llms.txt",
      "llms.txt standard"
    ],
    "canonical_spec_url": "https://llmstxt.org",
    "entity_uri": "https://llmstxt.org",
    "taxonomy_layer": "discovery",
    "sub_layer": "site-summary-file",
    "protocol_type": "declaration",
    "central_problem": "Gives language models a curated, markdown map of a site's most important content so they don't have to parse complex HTML, ads, or JavaScript.",
    "maintainer": "Jeremy Howard / Answer.AI + community (llmstxt.org)",
    "governance_body": "none (community proposal)",
    "license": {
      "value": "Apache-2.0",
      "verify_status": "verify-against-primary-at-build",
      "source_hint": "https://github.com/AnswerDotAI/llms-txt",
      "note": "Confirm the spec repo's license at build."
    },
    "maturity_tag": "emerging",
    "current_spec_version": {
      "value": null,
      "verify_status": "verify-against-primary-at-build",
      "source_hint": "https://llmstxt.org",
      "note": "llmstxt.org does not version the spec with a formal number; confirm at build."
    },
    "spec_date": {
      "value": null,
      "verify_status": "verify-against-primary-at-build",
      "source_hint": "https://llmstxt.org",
      "note": "Confirm latest spec revision date at build."
    },
    "launch_date": "2024-09-03",
    "last_verified": "2026-06-15",
    "transport": "Static markdown file at the domain root",
    "core_mechanism": "A markdown file at /llms.txt uses a fixed shape — H1 site name, a blockquote summary, then sectioned lists of links with short descriptions — so an LLM gets a concise, parseable map of the site's key pages (often with .md twins).",
    "discovery_endpoint": "/llms.txt (and the fuller /llms-full.txt)",
    "settlement_type": null,
    "adoption_metric": {
      "value": "Approximately 10% of studied sites by May 2026; adopters include Anthropic, Stripe, Cloudflare, Vercel, Mintlify, Supabase",
      "source": "https://www.answer.ai/posts/2024-09-03-llmstxt.html",
      "last_verified": "2026-06-15",
      "note": "~10% figure is from secondary surveys; treat as approximate. Origin proposal date is primary (answer.ai)."
    },
    "notable_adopters": [
      {
        "value": "Anthropic",
        "source": "https://codersera.com/blog/llms-txt-complete-guide-2026/"
      },
      {
        "value": "Stripe",
        "source": "https://codersera.com/blog/llms-txt-complete-guide-2026/"
      }
    ],
    "relationships": [
      {
        "predicate": "complements",
        "target": "agents-json",
        "note": "llms.txt declares content; agents.json declares APIs/workflows — paired Layer-1 discovery files."
      }
    ],
    "ideal_use_case": "Helping LLMs find and quote the right pages on a content/documentation site.",
    "when_to_use": "When you want models to read and cite your most important content — the cheapest, first agent-readiness step.",
    "when_not_to_use": "When agents need to take actions or call functions (use MCP/WebMCP/agents.json), not just read curated links.",
    "code_example": "# Acme Docs\n> Acme's developer documentation.\n\n## Core\n- [Quickstart](/quickstart.md): get started in 5 minutes\n- [API Reference](/api.md): every endpoint",
    "source": "Origin proposal (Jeremy Howard, Answer.AI), 2024-09-03: https://www.answer.ai/posts/2024-09-03-llmstxt.html . Spec home: https://llmstxt.org .",
    "agent_readiness_link": "agent-readiness/llms-txt",
    "layer_legacy": "content"
  }
}