API Reference - Agentic Browser Protocol

Complete API documentation for the Agentic Browser Protocol.

This document contains the complete API documentation and TypeScript definitions for ABP.

window.abp Interface

Every ABP-compliant app MUST expose this interface:

interface ABP {
  // Required methods
  initialize(params: InitializeParams): Promise<InitializeResult>;
  shutdown(params?: ShutdownParams): Promise<void>;
  call(capability: string, params?: object, options?: CallOptions): Promise<ABPResponse>;

  // Optional methods
  listCapabilities(): Promise<Capability[]>;
  describeCapability(name: string): Promise<Capability | null>;
  supports(name: string): Promise<SupportInfo>;
  notify(event: string, data?: unknown): void;
  notifyProgress(info: ProgressInfo): void;
  elicit(request: ElicitationRequest): Promise<ElicitationResponse>;
  cancel(callId: string, reason?: string): Promise<CancelResponse>;

  // Metadata
  protocolVersion: string;
  app: { id: string; name: string; version: string };
}

Core Methods

initialize()

Start an ABP session.

initialize(params: InitializeParams): Promise<InitializeResult>

Parameters:

interface InitializeParams {
  agent: { name: string; version: string };
  protocolVersion: string;
  requestedCapabilities?: string[];
  features: {
    notifications: boolean;
    progress: boolean;
    elicitation: boolean;
  };
  agentCapabilities?: {
    allowedRequests: string[];
  };
}

Returns:

interface InitializeResult {
  sessionId: string;
  protocolVersion: string;
  app: { id: string; name: string; version: string };
  capabilities: CapabilitySummary[];
  features: {
    notifications: boolean;
    progress: boolean;
    elicitation: boolean;
    dynamicCapabilities: boolean;
  };
}

Example:

const session = await abp.initialize({
  agent: { name: 'my-agent', version: '1.0.0' },
  protocolVersion: '0.1',
  features: { notifications: true, progress: true, elicitation: true }
});

shutdown()

End an ABP session.

shutdown(params?: ShutdownParams): Promise<void>

Parameters:

interface ShutdownParams {
  reason?: string;
}

Example:

await abp.shutdown({ reason: 'User requested disconnect' });

call()

Execute a capability.

call(capability: string, params?: object, options?: CallOptions): Promise<ABPResponse>

Parameters:

capability — Capability name (e.g., "convert.markdownToHtml")
params — Capability-specific parameters
options — Call options

interface CallOptions {
  timeout?: number;
  progressToken?: string;
  callId?: string;
}

Returns:

interface ABPResponse<T = unknown> {
  success: boolean;
  data?: T;
  error?: ABPError;
  metadata?: {
    duration: number;
    cached?: boolean;
  };
  cancelled?: boolean;
}

interface ABPError {
  code: string;
  message: string;
  details?: unknown;
  retryable: boolean;
  retryAfter?: number;
  alternatives?: string[];
}

Example:

const result = await abp.call('convert.markdownToHtml', {
  markdown: '# Hello World',
  options: { sanitize: true }
});

if (result.success) {
  console.log('HTML:', result.data.html);
} else {
  console.error('Error:', result.error.message);
}

Discovery Methods

listCapabilities()

List all available capabilities.

listCapabilities(): Promise<Capability[]>

Returns: Array of Capability objects (see Types).

describeCapability()

Get detailed information about a specific capability.

describeCapability(name: string): Promise<Capability | null>

Returns: Capability object or null if not found.

supports()

Quick check if a capability is supported and available.

supports(name: string): Promise<SupportInfo>

Returns:

interface SupportInfo {
  supported: boolean;
  available: boolean;
  reason?: string;
  requirements?: Requirement[];
  features?: Record<string, boolean>;
  alternatives?: string[];
}

Example:

const support = await abp.supports('convert.markdownToHtml');
if (support.available) {
  // Can use right now
} else {
  console.log('Not available:', support.reason);
}

Communication Methods

notify()

Send a notification to the agent (app → agent).

notify(event: string, data?: unknown): void

Example:

abp.notify('notifications/state/changed', {
  field: 'documentReady',
  oldValue: false,
  newValue: true
});

notifyProgress()

Report progress for a long-running operation.

notifyProgress(info: ProgressInfo): void

Parameters:

interface ProgressInfo {
  operationId: string;
  progress: number;
  total?: number;
  percentage?: number;
  status?: string;
  stage?: string;
  estimatedRemaining?: number;
}

Example:

abp.notifyProgress({
  operationId: 'pdf-123',
  progress: 5,
  total: 10,
  percentage: 50,
  status: 'Rendering page 5 of 10'
});

elicit()

Request input from the agent/user.

elicit(request: ElicitationRequest): Promise<ElicitationResponse>

Parameters:

interface ElicitationRequest {
  method: string;
  params?: Record<string, unknown>;
  timeout?: number;
}

Returns:

interface ElicitationResponse {
  success: boolean;
  data?: unknown;
  error?: ABPError;
  cancelled?: boolean;
}

Example:

const response = await abp.elicit({
  method: 'elicitation/input',
  params: {
    prompt: 'What page size?',
    schema: { type: 'string', enum: ['letter', 'a4'] }
  }
});

if (response.success) {
  const pageSize = response.data.value;
}

cancel()

Cancel a long-running operation.

cancel(callId: string, reason?: string): Promise<CancelResponse>

Returns:

interface CancelResponse {
  callId: string;
  cancelled: boolean;
  reason?: string;
}

Transport Message Format

The ABPMessage envelope type is used by postMessage and WebSocket transports:

interface ABPMessage {
  type: ABPMessageType;
  id?: string;           // For request-response correlation
  timestamp: number;     // Unix milliseconds
  payload: unknown;
}

type ABPMessageType =
  // Agent → App
  | 'initialize'
  | 'capabilities/call'
  | 'capabilities/cancel'
  | 'shutdown'
  | 'elicitation/response'
  // App → Agent
  | 'initialize-result'
  | 'capabilities/call-result'
  | 'capabilities/cancel-result'
  | 'notification'
  | 'progress'
  | 'elicitation/request';

Message Types

Direction	Type	Purpose
Agent → App	`initialize`	Establish session
App → Agent	`initialize-result`	Session established
Agent → App	`capabilities/call`	Call capability
App → Agent	`capabilities/call-result`	Capability response
Agent → App	`capabilities/cancel`	Cancel in-progress call
App → Agent	`capabilities/cancel-result`	Cancellation result
App → Agent	`notification`	Push event
App → Agent	`progress`	Operation progress
App → Agent	`elicitation/request`	Elicitation from app
Agent → App	`elicitation/response`	Response to elicitation
Agent → App	`shutdown`	End session

This envelope is used by postMessage and WebSocket transports. Puppeteer transport uses page.evaluate() directly.

Puppeteer Callback Function Names

Client implementations using Puppeteer/Playwright MUST use these function names for interoperability:

Function	Direction	Purpose
`__abp_notification`	App → Agent	Notifications
`__abp_progress`	App → Agent	Progress updates
`__abp_elicitation`	App → Agent	Elicitation requests
`__abp_capabilities_changed`	App → Agent	Capability changes

Types

Capability

interface Capability {
  name: string;
  description: string;
  inputSchema: JSONSchema;
  outputSchema: JSONSchema;
  available: boolean;
  requirements: Requirement[];
  features: Record<string, boolean>;
  experimental?: boolean;
  deprecated?: boolean;
  deprecationMessage?: string;
  alternatives?: string[];
  browserRequirement?: string;
}

Requirement

interface Requirement {
  type: 'permission' | 'context' | 'gesture' | 'browser' | 'hardware' | 'state';
  description: string;
  met: boolean;
  resolution?: string;
}

CapabilitySummary

interface CapabilitySummary {
  name: string;
  available: boolean;
  experimental?: boolean;
  deprecated?: boolean;
}

Standard Error Codes

Code	Description	Retryable
`NOT_INITIALIZED`	Session not initialized	Yes
`UNKNOWN_CAPABILITY`	Capability doesn’t exist	No
`INVALID_PARAMS`	Parameters don’t match schema	No
`PERMISSION_DENIED`	User denied permission	Yes
`REQUIREMENT_NOT_MET`	Capability requirement not satisfied	Depends
`OPERATION_FAILED`	Capability execution failed	Depends
`NOT_SUPPORTED`	Feature not supported	No
`TIMEOUT`	Operation timed out	Yes

See Error Handling Guide for complete details.

Standard Elicitation Methods

Method	Description
`elicitation/input`	Request required user input
`elicitation/preference`	Request optional preference
`elicitation/confirm`	Request yes/no confirmation
`elicitation/select`	Request selection from options
`elicitation/resource`	Request a file or resource
`sampling/create`	Request AI assistance

See Elicitation Guide for details.

Complete TypeScript Definitions

For reference implementations, here are the complete TypeScript definitions for all ABP types:

Core ABP Interface

interface ABP {
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // IDENTITY
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Protocol version implemented */
  readonly protocolVersion: string;

  /** App identification */
  readonly app: AppInfo;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // LIFECYCLE
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Initialize a session with the app */
  initialize(params: InitializeParams): Promise<InitializeResult>;

  /** End the session */
  shutdown(params?: ShutdownParams): Promise<void>;

  /** Check if a session is initialized */
  readonly initialized: boolean;

  /** Current session ID (if initialized) */
  readonly sessionId: string | null;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // CAPABILITIES
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** List all available capabilities */
  listCapabilities(): Promise<Capability[]>;

  /** Get details for a specific capability */
  describeCapability(name: string): Promise<Capability | null>;

  /** Quick check if capability is supported and available */
  supports(name: string): Promise<SupportInfo>;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // CALLING CAPABILITIES
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Call a capability */
  call<T = unknown>(
    capability: string,
    params?: Record<string, unknown>,
    options?: CallOptions
  ): Promise<ABPResponse<T>>;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // CANCELLATION
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Cancel an in-progress capability call */
  cancel(params: CancelParams): Promise<CancelResponse>;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // NOTIFICATIONS (App → Agent)
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Send a notification to the agent */
  notify(event: string, data?: unknown): void;

  /** Send progress update to the agent */
  notifyProgress(progress: ProgressInfo): void;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // ELICITATION (App → Agent)
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Request something from the agent via elicitation */
  elicit<T = unknown>(request: ElicitationRequest): Promise<ElicitationResponse<T>>;

  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  // EVENT HANDLERS (Agent sets these)
  // ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

  /** Handler for notifications from app */
  onNotification?: (notification: Notification) => void;

  /** Handler for progress updates from app */
  onProgress?: (progress: ProgressInfo) => void;

  /** Handler for elicitation requests from app */
  onElicitation?: (request: ElicitationRequest) => Promise<ElicitationResponse>;

  /** Handler for capability changes */
  onCapabilitiesChanged?: (changes: CapabilityChanges) => void;
}

Identity Types

interface AppInfo {
  id: string;           // Unique identifier: "vendor.app-name"
  name: string;         // Human-readable name
  version: string;      // Semantic version
  description?: string;
}

interface AgentInfo {
  name: string;         // Agent name: "my-agent"
  version: string;      // Agent version
}

Lifecycle Types

interface FeatureFlags {
  notifications: boolean;
  progress: boolean;
  elicitation: boolean;
  dynamicCapabilities?: boolean;
}

interface AgentCapabilities {
  allowedRequests: string[];
}

Discovery Types

interface ABPManifest {
  abp: string;                        // Protocol version, e.g., "1.0"
  app: ManifestAppInfo;               // App identification
  capabilities: ManifestCapability[]; // Available capabilities
}

interface ManifestAppInfo {
  id: string;           // Unique identifier: "vendor.app-name"
  name: string;         // Human-readable name
  version: string;      // Semantic version
  description?: string; // Brief description
  homepage?: string;    // App homepage URL
  icon?: string;        // URL to app icon
  support?: string;     // Support URL or email
}

interface ManifestCapability {
  name: string;              // Capability name, e.g., "convert.markdownToHtml"
  description?: string;      // Human-readable description
  inputSchema?: JSONSchema;  // Input parameters schema
  outputSchema?: JSONSchema; // Output data schema
  experimental?: boolean;    // Capability is experimental
  deprecated?: boolean;      // Capability is deprecated
}

interface DiscoveryResult {
  supported: boolean;        // Whether app supports ABP
  manifest?: ABPManifest;    // The manifest (if supported)
  reason?: string;           // Why discovery failed (if not supported)
}

Capability Changes

interface CapabilityChanges {
  added: string[];
  removed: string[];
  changed: string[];
}

Cancellation Types

interface CancelParams {
  callId: string;           // ID of the call to cancel
  reason?: string;          // Optional reason for logging/debugging
}

interface CancelResponse {
  callId: string;           // Echo back the call ID
  cancelled: boolean;       // Whether cancellation succeeded
  reason?: string;          // Why cancellation failed (if applicable)
}

Binary Data Types

interface BinaryData {
  // The binary content (format depends on transport)
  content: string | ArrayBuffer | Blob;

  // REQUIRED: MIME type of the content
  mimeType: string;

  // REQUIRED when content is a string: encoding used
  encoding?: 'base64' | 'utf-8';

  // RECOMMENDED: size in bytes
  size?: number;

  // OPTIONAL: suggested filename
  filename?: string;
}

interface BinaryDataReference {
  // URL to download the content
  downloadUrl: string;

  // REQUIRED: MIME type
  mimeType: string;

  // REQUIRED: size in bytes
  size: number;

  // OPTIONAL: suggested filename
  filename?: string;

  // OPTIONAL: when the URL expires (Unix timestamp ms)
  expiresAt?: number;

  // OPTIONAL: authentication for download
  auth?: BinaryDownloadAuth;
}

interface BinaryDownloadAuth {
  type: 'bearer' | 'query';
  token?: string;           // For query auth
  header?: string;          // For bearer auth
}

// Union type for binary responses
type BinaryOutput = BinaryData | BinaryDataReference;

Elicitation Method Types

// Standard elicitation method names
type StandardElicitationMethod =
  | 'elicitation/input'
  | 'elicitation/preference'
  | 'elicitation/confirm'
  | 'elicitation/select'
  | 'elicitation/resource'
  | 'sampling/create';

// elicitation/input
interface ElicitationInputParams {
  prompt: string;
  schema: JSONSchema;
}
interface ElicitationInputResponse {
  value: unknown;
}

// elicitation/preference
interface ElicitationPreferenceParams {
  prompt: string;
  schema: JSONSchema;
  default: unknown;
}
interface ElicitationPreferenceResponse {
  value: unknown;
}

// elicitation/confirm
interface ElicitationConfirmParams {
  message: string;
  destructive?: boolean;
}
interface ElicitationConfirmResponse {
  confirmed: boolean;
}

// elicitation/select
interface ElicitationSelectParams {
  prompt: string;
  options: Array<{ value: string; label: string }>;
  default?: string;
}
interface ElicitationSelectResponse {
  selected: string;
}

// elicitation/resource
interface ElicitationResourceParams {
  type: string;
  uri?: string;
}
interface ElicitationResourceResponse {
  content: string;
  mimeType: string;
}

// sampling/create
interface SamplingCreateParams {
  task: string;
  context?: string;
}
interface SamplingCreateResponse {
  result: string;
}

JSON Schema (Simplified)

interface JSONSchema {
  type?: string | string[];
  properties?: Record<string, JSONSchema>;
  items?: JSONSchema;
  required?: string[];
  enum?: unknown[];
  const?: unknown;
  default?: unknown;
  description?: string;
  minimum?: number;
  maximum?: number;
  minLength?: number;
  maxLength?: number;
  pattern?: string;
  format?: string;
  [key: string]: unknown;
}

Window Declaration

For TypeScript projects, add this to your global declarations:

declare global {
  interface Window {
    abp?: ABP;
  }
}

Next Steps

Protocol Overview

Full specification details

Building ABP Apps

Build your first ABP app

Examples & Tutorials

Working code examples

Protocol API

Implementation

​window.abp Interface

​Core Methods

​initialize()

​shutdown()

​call()

​Discovery Methods

​listCapabilities()

​describeCapability()

​supports()

​Communication Methods

​notify()

​notifyProgress()

​elicit()

​cancel()

​Transport Message Format

​Message Types

​Puppeteer Callback Function Names

​Types

​Capability

​Requirement

​CapabilitySummary

​Standard Error Codes

​Standard Elicitation Methods

​Complete TypeScript Definitions

​Core ABP Interface

​Identity Types

​Lifecycle Types

​Discovery Types

​Capability Changes

​Cancellation Types

​Binary Data Types

​Elicitation Method Types

​JSON Schema (Simplified)

​Window Declaration

​Next Steps

Protocol Overview

Building ABP Apps

Examples & Tutorials

window.abp Interface

Core Methods

initialize()

shutdown()

call()

Discovery Methods

listCapabilities()

describeCapability()

supports()

Communication Methods

notify()

notifyProgress()

elicit()

cancel()

Transport Message Format

Message Types

Puppeteer Callback Function Names

Types

Capability

Requirement

CapabilitySummary

Standard Error Codes

Standard Elicitation Methods

Complete TypeScript Definitions

Core ABP Interface

Identity Types

Lifecycle Types

Discovery Types

Capability Changes

Cancellation Types

Binary Data Types

Elicitation Method Types

JSON Schema (Simplified)

Window Declaration

Next Steps