Google Chrome’s WebMCP has been released in early preview, offering a new approach to how websites can interact with AI-powered browser agents. While the project is still in its early stages, it points to a broader shift in how the web may evolve as automated agents become more common. Rather than relying on brittle screen-scraping or ad-hoc automation, WebMCP proposes a structured way for websites to expose actions that AI agents can understand and execute more reliably.
At its core, WebMCP aims to make websites “agent-ready” by allowing site owners to define how automated agents can interact with their services. The idea is to reduce ambiguity by replacing guesswork with clearly defined tools and interfaces. This could allow agents to perform tasks such as booking travel, submitting support requests, or navigating complex workflows with greater accuracy and speed.
The proposal introduces two complementary APIs. A declarative approach allows common actions to be described directly in HTML, making simple interactions easy to support. A more flexible imperative approach relies on JavaScript for dynamic or complex tasks. Together, they’re designed to give developers control over how and where agents can act on behalf of users.
Although WebMCP is currently limited to an early preview program, its focus on standardizing agent-to-website interactions highlights a growing area of interest across the web and AI communities. As AI agents move beyond answering questions and begin carrying out tasks, efforts like WebMCP suggest how websites may adapt to remain compatible with this emerging “agentic” layer of the web.
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