What is AXO?
Agent experience optimization is user experience for software agents. It looks at the entry points agents use to work with your product, such as APIs, OpenAPI docs, MCP servers, llms.txt and standard sign-in flows, and how reliable they are.
As more work is delegated to agents, products that agents can use smoothly get used more. AXO applies the developer-experience mindset to AI agents.
Why AXO matters
Agents choose tools they can operate reliably. A product with documented APIs and machine-readable docs can be plugged into AI workflows; one without them is harder to use and gets passed over.
How AXO works
- 01
Discover
The agent finds your product's capabilities through docs, llms.txt or a registry.
- 02
Connect
It signs in, ideally through standard OAuth flows.
- 03
Operate
It calls your APIs or MCP tools to carry out tasks.
- 04
Recover
Clear errors let it retry or explain what went wrong.
AXO best practices
- Publish an OpenAPI specification for your API.
- Offer an MCP server if agents should act inside your product.
- Add an llms.txt that links your developer docs.
- Use standard OAuth with discovery metadata.
- Return clear, structured error messages.
Common AXO mistakes
- Docs that can only be read in a JavaScript-heavy portal.
- Custom sign-in flows agents can't complete.
- Vague errors like “Something went wrong”.
How to measure AXO
Metrics to track
- Number of agent entry points available
- API and MCP usage by agents
- Agent task success and error rates
What it improves
- API and MCP availability
- OpenAPI documentation
- Auth flows agents can complete
- Error clarity
AXO vs. related optimizations
These overlap with AXO. Work on one usually helps the others.
AXO FAQ
What is MCP?+
The Model Context Protocol is an open standard that lets AI assistants connect to external tools and data. An MCP server exposes your product's actions so agents can use them directly.
What is an A2A agent card?+
Part of the Agent2Agent protocol: a JSON file describing an agent's capabilities, so other agents can discover it and communicate with it.
Do I need an API to benefit from AXO?+
Not necessarily. Clear HTML, an llms.txt file and well-structured documentation already help agents. APIs and MCP servers add direct, reliable actions.
What is an OpenAPI specification?+
A standard, machine-readable description of an HTTP API: its endpoints, parameters and responses. Agents and tools read it to call the API correctly.