AXO / AEO Machine Web Glossary

 

📘 A complete reference of standardized web, API, and agent-related terms —with plain-English explanations, context, and relevance to Agent Experience Optimization (AXO) and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO).

🔹 A

AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)

Optimization practice so that AI answer engines (like Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Bing Copilot) can understand and use your data directly.

API (Application Programming Interface)

A structured way for systems to communicate using HTTP and JSON. Core to web automation and agent interaction.

API Semantics

Defines meaning, safety, and structure of API endpoints. Ensures agents can interpret APIs correctly.

AXO (Agent Experience Optimization)

Optimization for AI agents and autonomous systems to discover, interpret, and act on your site and APIs.

🔹 B

Base URL

The main domain or root of a website or API, e.g., https://faunapc.com.

🔹 C

Caching

Temporary storage of resources for speed and efficiency. Helps performance and AXO scoring.

Content-Language

HTTP header declaring the main language of content.

Crawl Accessibility

How easily crawlers and AI agents can access and index site data.

🔹 D

Discovery

Mechanisms allowing agents to find structured data, APIs, and policies (e.g., robots.txt, .well-known/agent.json).

🔹 E

Error Schema

Standard JSON format for API error responses, usually containing code, message, and remediation.

ETag

HTTP header identifying a version of a resource to optimize caching and change detection.

🔹 F

FAQPage / HowTo

JSON-LD schema types enabling AI to extract direct answers from content.

🔹 H

hreflang

HTML tag specifying alternate language versions of a page.

HTTP Methods

Web request verbs defining API behavior: GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, PATCH.

🔹 I

Idempotent

Operation that produces the same result even when repeated multiple times (e.g., DELETE /user/123).

i18n (Internationalization)

Preparing systems to support multiple languages and regions.

🔹 J

JSON (JavaScript Object Notation)

Lightweight, structured data format used for APIs.

JSON-LD (JSON for Linked Data)

W3C standard embedding semantic data into web pages for AI understanding.

🔹 K

KB (Knowledge Base)

Machine-readable repository (e.g., /api/kb.json) of facts, FAQs, and policies.

🔹 L

Link Header

HTTP relation headers (e.g., rel="openapi") that point agents to structured resources.

🔹 M

Machine Knowledge

Structured data consumable directly by AI agents or LLMs.

🔹 O

OpenAPI Specification (OAS)

Standard for describing REST APIs in JSON or YAML format; previously known as Swagger Specification.

🔹 P

Performance & Caching

Category measuring API speed, latency, and cache efficiency.

Policies

Structured documents (e.g., /api/refunds.json) exposing legal and business rules.

🔹 R

robots.txt

File defining which site areas are accessible to crawlers (RFC 9309).

Retry Safety

Ensures repeated API calls do not cause duplicate actions.

🔹 S

Schema.org

Vocabulary for structured data markup used by search and answer engines.

security.txt

File in /.well-known/ listing security contact information (RFC 9116).

Swagger

Toolset for creating and visualizing OpenAPI specifications.

🔹 T

TTI (Time to Initial Results)

Metric for how quickly a system returns first usable output.

🔹 U

User-Agent

HTTP header identifying the requesting client (browser, bot, or agent).

🔹 V

Verbose

Means "detailed" or "wordy." In computing, verbose mode shows extended logs.

🔹 W

Well-Known Directory (/.well-known/)

Standardized folder for machine-readable metadata like security.txt and agent.json (RFC 8615).

YAML (YAML Ain't Markup Language)

Human-friendly data format for configuration and API specs (commonly used in OpenAPI files).

💡 Summary Table — Machine Data Standards Overview

Layer Example File Standard Purpose
Discovery robots.txt, sitemap.xml RFC 9309 Bot & agent navigation
Machine Knowledge /api/kb.json AXO Convention Factual data for AI
Policies /api/refunds.json AXO Convention Legal and operational context
Structured Data JSON-LD W3C / Schema.org Answer engine visibility
APIs /api/openapi.yaml OpenAPI 3.1 Machine-readable API docs
Metadata /.well-known/agent.json RFC 8615 (pattern) Agent discovery
Error Schema JSON with code, message, remediation AXO Convention Predictable error handling
i18n Content-Language, hreflang W3C Multilingual support

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Your Website Is Not Just for People — It’s for Machines too

  When most teams think about their website, they picture a human visitor: a potential customer browsing product pages, a client reading a case study, or a job applicant checking out the careers page. That perspective is important — but it’s only half the story. In 2025, your website is also constantly visited by machines: search engines, AI agents, APIs, and monitoring tools. If you don’t optimize for them, your answers won’t be discoverable, and assistants won’t recommend your business. Who’s Really Visiting Your Website? 1. Humans via Browsers Everyday users arrive through browsers like Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge. Their experience is measured by Core Web Vitals : load speed, interactivity, and layout stability. Optimizing here builds trust, boosts conversions, and supports accessibility. 2. Search & Discovery Crawlers Search engines such as Googlebot, Bingbot, and BaiduSpider crawl your site daily. Social bots like Facebook’s crawler and Twitterbot fetch metadat...
Read more

Welcome to the Digital Era of Optimization: A Beginner's Guide

For the last two decades, the world of digital optimization had a clear set of rules. If you wanted to be found online, you focused on one thing: search engines. The game was all about mastering keywords, building backlinks, and improving page speed to climb the rankings on Google. But the digital landscape has fundamentally changed. We've reached a fork in the road, where the old path of traditional Search Engine Optimization (SEO) diverges from a new, much broader path: Digital Optimization. The rise of AI assistants, autonomous agents, and powerful generative engines has completely rewritten the rules. Optimization is no longer just about getting found by people typing into a search bar. It’s about being understood by AI, used by automated agents, and trusted by users in a complex digital ecosystem. This guide is designed to introduce you to this new era by explaining its three foundational pillars, helping you understand the fundamental shift that is underway. 1.Search & AI...
Read more

Kosovo’s New Crypto Regulations: Aligning with MiCA

  Kosovo has recently taken decisive steps to regulate the fast-growing world of crypto-assets. With the adoption of Law No. 08/L-295 on Crypto-Assets and the Central Bank of Kosovo’s Regulation on Licensing Crypto-Asset Service Providers (OSHKA), the country has built a comprehensive legal framework for crypto markets. These measures place Kosovo among the first in the Western Balkans to establish a structured, EU-aligned regulatory system. 🚀✅🔒 The Core of Kosovo’s Law on Crypto-Assets 📜🔑🏛️ The law sets the foundation for how crypto activities should be carried out in the country. Key points include: Licensing & Authorization : No individual or company may issue, trade, or provide custody of crypto-assets without authorization from the relevant authorities. Responsible Authorities : Oversight is shared between the Central Bank of Kosovo (BQK) , the Tax Administration of Kosovo (ATK) , and the Financial Intelligence Unit (NjIF) . Consumer Protection : Transparen...
Read more