Six protocols emerged. Three decide which agents survive.

What's really happening inside the agent protocol stack as Google I/O kicks off? The common story is that every new protocol is a must-have standard — but the reality is more complicated.In this postcast, I share the inside scoop on the six agent protocols shaping how AI agents actually ship and how customers experience them:Why three protocols are becoming the real agent stackHow MCP, A2A, and AGUI map to core agent jobsWhat separates a standard from a contested protocolWhere payment protocols collide with customer trustFor builders and operators, the agentic substrate is a real lever on customer experience, but only if you stop chasing acronyms and start asking which protocols actually shape the workflow you're shipping.Subscribe for daily AI strategy and news. For deeper playbooks and analysis: https://natesnewsletter.substack.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.