ICANN has opened the first new generic top-level domain application round since 2012, releasing a filing set of 1,615 applications that could reshape how organizations, communities and technology sectors present themselves online. The applications range from corporate brand names and cryptocurrency terms to artificial intelligence concepts, network infrastructure labels and geographic identifiers.

Key facts

• ICANN received 1,615 applications in the new gTLD round, the first since 2012.
• The 2012 round added 1,241 gTLDs; the current round could bring roughly 1,600 new strings into consideration.
• North America accounts for 864 applications, Europe 506, Asia/Australia/Pacific 218, Latin America and the Caribbean 11, and Africa 1.
• There are 333 brand-related applications, at least 29 AI-related strings, at least 31 crypto and blockchain strings, 16 network and developer terms, and 15 self-identified geographic applications.
• Some 263 strings have more than one applicant; .agent is the most contested with 13 applicants, followed by .bit with 11, and .api, .brand and .hub with 10 each.
• String Confirmation Day is set for Nov. 17, 2026, followed by a Community Input and Objections Period through March 16, 2027, and a Prioritization Draw in the first half of 2027.

A rare expansion after 14 years

The domain name system began in 1985 with a small set of primary top-level domains: .com, .net, .org, .edu, .gov and .mil. Growth came in fits and starts for decades. The 2012 round was the last major expansion, adding 1,241 new gTLDs. That round changed the internet's namespace and introduced hundreds of new suffixes, but it also exposed operational and policy challenges that ICANN and the broader community have spent years reviewing.

The current round is larger in application volume than the 2012 exercise, with 1,615 applications submitted. ICANN has said the round could bring roughly 1,600 new names into consideration, although not every application will survive evaluation, objection or string confirmation. The application list is a starting point, not a final delegation list.

What changed since 2012

ICANN has adjusted the process in several areas. A standalone Registry Service Provider Evaluation Program allows back-end registry providers to be pre-evaluated separately from the application itself. Registry service providers handle the technical operations behind a top-level domain. Some registry operators perform that work in-house; others outsource it. Pre-evaluation is intended to reduce duplicated technical reviews and give applicants more certainty about the operational side of a bid.

The Applicant Support Program has also expanded. It offers financial support to applicants who need it. In this round, 76 applications were received, 56 qualified and 51 submitted a gTLD application. By comparison, the 2012 program received three applications and one applicant progressed. The difference is significant because it affects who can participate in the namespace and whether the next expansion reflects a broader set of regions and communities.

Applicants can now seek variant gTLDs. A variant TLD is an internationalized domain name that can be registered in different ways because of spelling variations in a given language. ICANN's community developed mechanisms to manage these variants, and the current round allows applications for them. Internationalized domain names can be applied for in 26 scripts representing more than 380 languages. One of the 21 IDN applications is for the Chinese term for artificial intelligence.

Trademark rights protection has received additional attention. The community conducted an extensive policy review of the rules and protections from the 2012 round through the Review of Rights Protection Mechanisms Policy Development Process. That work has shaped the current evaluation framework, including commitments around trademark protections. The goal is to preserve legitimate rights while allowing new strings to enter the DNS.

Applications by the numbers

The geographic distribution of applications is heavily weighted toward North America, which accounts for 864 filings. Europe accounts for 506. Asia, Australia and the Pacific account for 218. Latin America and the Caribbean account for 11, and Africa accounts for 1. Those figures matter because gTLD policy debates often focus on whether the domain name system serves a truly global internet or concentrates control and participation in a few regions.

The filing set includes 333 brand applications. Technology and cloud names include .adobe, .cloudflare, .datadog, .salesforce, .shopify, .slack, .snowflake and .stripe. Consumer platforms include .facebook, .instagram, .whatsapp, .tiktok, .zoom, .airbnb and .uber. Other examples include .adidas, .newbalance, .bankofamerica and .goldmansachs. Brand applications are often defensive, strategic or both. A company may want a dedicated namespace for products, campaigns or security controls, or it may want to prevent another party from operating a string that overlaps with its identity.

Artificial intelligence is one of the most visible categories. The file includes at least 29 strings tied to AI terms or AI company and product names. Generic terms include .agent, which drew 13 applicants, .agentic with two, and .agi, short for artificial general intelligence, with seven. Other strings include .llm for large language model with two applicants, .mcp for Model Context Protocol with five, plus .prompt and .superintelligence. Company and product names include .openai, .chatgpt, .codex, .anthropic, .claude, .copilot, .gemini, .llama and .qwen. Community-based applications include one each for .agent and .mcp. The range shows how quickly AI vocabulary has moved from technical shorthand into mainstream naming ambitions.

Cryptocurrency and blockchain are also well represented. The file includes at least 31 strings tied to the sector. Names include .bitcoin with two applicants, .crypto with five, .ethereum, .ether with two, .solana, .tether, .ripple, .ledger, .wallet with four and .token with three. Four community-based applications are for crypto strings: .bitcoin, .sol, .sui and .avax. The interest reflects both the sector's growth and its desire for namespace control, identity and user trust.

Network and developer terms make up another cluster. At least 16 strings come from the network and developer stack, including .lan for local area network, .vpn for virtual private network with two applicants, .dns for Domain Name System with two, .cdn for content delivery network, .proxy, .auth and .login. The string .api, for application programming interface, drew 10 applicants. These terms are notable because they overlap with names that organizations often use inside private networks. That raises technical questions about name collision, which ICANN evaluates before delegation.

Geographic names appear in 15 self-identified applications. Examples include .bali, .beijing, .bremen, .budapest, .salzburg and .vienna. Geographic applications can represent cities, regions or communities, and they often carry governance questions about who speaks for a place and how the namespace will be operated.

The most contested strings

Competition is concentrated in a relatively small number of strings. About 263 names have more than one applicant. The most contested is .agent with 13 applicants. .bit follows with 11. .api, .brand and .hub each drew 10. When multiple applicants seek the same string, ICANN's processes must determine how the contention is resolved. The outcome can depend on community objections, applicant qualifications, auctions or other mechanisms established for the round. Contested strings can also signal where commercial, technical or cultural value is expected to concentrate.

Making sure new gTLDs work

Adding new gTLDs is not only a matter of accepting proposals. ICANN must validate that a new name will work without disrupting existing services. Two concepts are central to that work: name collision and universal acceptance.

Name collision occurs when a new public TLD matches a name that a network already uses privately. Many organizations use internal names that do not exist in the public DNS, such as an internal domain ending in .corp or .lan. If ICANN delegates a new gTLD with the same string, lookups for those internal names can start resolving through the public DNS or leak out of the network instead of staying internal. That can break applications or expose traffic. ICANN's name collision framework subjects every applied-for string to a risk assessment, and the requirements placed on an applicant depend on the risk identified.

Universal acceptance concerns whether software actually works with every valid domain name and email address, including new ones. The broader use of internationalized domain names and longer TLDs depends on progress in this area. Universal acceptance ensures that all valid domain names and email addresses can be correctly accepted, validated, processed, stored and displayed across internet-enabled applications, devices and systems. Without that support, a new gTLD may exist in the DNS but fail in practical use.

What happens next

So far, ICANN has only revealed which applications have been made. The next milestone is String Confirmation Day on Nov. 17, 2026, when ICANN will publish the final list of strings that will proceed through the program. That date begins the Community Input and Objections Period, which runs to March 16, 2027. ICANN has set a Prioritization Draw for the first half of 2027 to determine processing order. The timeline means the namespace will not change overnight; each string must move through evaluation, objection and delegation steps before it can appear in the public DNS.

Source:Network World News