Provision of IN.1 and IMEC.1 Identities for Participating AI Agents
“in.1 identifies the Indian Agent. imec.1 identifies its participation in the corridor. IBM ADS orchestrates its work. AI Agents automates approved workflows. Humans retain accountability.”
Executive Summary & Strategic Opportunity
The India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC) connects economies through trade, logistics, energy, digital infrastructure, and technological cooperation. As these systems become increasingly AI-enabled, a critical infrastructure requirement emerges: AI Agents operating across the corridor require persistent, verifiable identities, discoverable capabilities, and defined permissions.
The Key Identity Questions
An AI Agent interacting across multiple jurisdictions must systematically answer:
- Identity: Who am I?
- Operator: Who operates me?
- Capabilities: What can I do?
- Authorization: What am I authorized to do, and where?
- Accountability: Who is legally and operationally accountable for my actions?
Core Architectural Principle
The architecture separates functional responsibilities into five discrete layers to balance national sovereignty, enterprise orchestration, and corridor-wide interoperability:
| Function | Proposed Layer |
|---|---|
| National Identity | National .1 namespace (e.g., in.1, ae.1, sa.1) |
| Corridor Participation | imec.1 |
| Enterprise Agent Orchestration | IBM ADS |
| Approved Workflow Automation | AI Agents |
| Accountability | Human Organisation |
Federated Identity Architecture
The architecture is federated: each participating jurisdiction retains its national identity and verification arrangements, while imec.1 provides a common corridor-level participation and discovery layer.
IMEC AI Identity & Discovery
│
┌──────────────────────┼──────────────────────┐
│ │ │
in.1 ae.1 sa.1
INDIA UAE SAUDI ARABIA
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
National National National
AI Identity AI Identity AI Identity
│ │ │
└──────────────────────┼──────────────────────┘
│
▼
Verified AI Agents
│
▼
IBM ADS
Agent Orchestration
│
▼
AI Agents
Approved Automation
│
▼
Human Oversight
│
▼
IMEC Economic Activity
Identity Model & imec.1 Record Structure
The national namespace establishes baseline entity identity, while imec.1 establishes corridor participation roles and permissions.
Namespace Relationship Hierarchy
│
▼
AI Agent ──────► procurement.tradologie.in.1
│
▼
IMEC Role ─────► procurement.imec.1
Conceptual imec.1 JSON Record
“agent_id”: “procurement.tradologie.in.1”,
“imec_identity”: “procurement.imec.1”,
“national_namespace”: “in.1”,
“country”: “IN”,
“role”: “procurement”,
“capabilities”: [
“supplier-discovery”,
“rfq”,
“quotation-comparison”
],
“permissions”: {
“discover”: true,
“interact”: true,
“request_quote”: true,
“commit_transaction”: false
},
“human_oversight”: true,
“status”: “verified”
}
Reference Implementation & Orchestration Layer
India.Agentic-AI.Trade / in.1 Implementation
Under the proposed initial reference implementation, Tradologie serves as a proposed Namespace Steward to support the verification and registration of participating Indian organizations and their AI Agents across Buyer, Supplier, and Trade categories.
IBM ADS Orchestration Integration
The framework cleanly separates identity from enterprise execution:
- imec.1: Establishes who the Agent is (Identity & Discovery).
- IBM ADS: Orchestrates how the Agent works (Enterprise Integration & Governance).
- AI Agents: Executes approved workflow automations.
- Humans: Retain accountability for approval, oversight, and risk management.
Priority Categories & Graduated Trust Model
To ensure smooth adoption, the architecture defines key functional domains and a progressive, 5-level trust framework:
| Category | Example Endpoints |
|---|---|
| Trade | buyer.imec.1, supplier.imec.1, procurement.imec.1 |
| Logistics | shipping.imec.1, rail.imec.1, port.imec.1, warehouse.imec.1 |
| Compliance | customs.imec.1, certification.imec.1, compliance.imec.1 |
| Energy | hydrogen.imec.1, electricity.imec.1, renewables.imec.1 |
| Digital Infra | data.imec.1, cloud.imec.1, cybersecurity.imec.1 |
| Finance | tradefinance.imec.1, payment.imec.1, insurance.imec.1 |
Graduated Trust Hierarchy
- Level 1 — Self-Asserted: The organisation claims ownership of an Agent.
- Level 2 — Nationally Verified: Associated with a verified national identity (e.g.,
supplier.in.1). - Level 3 — IMEC-Registered: Recognized as participating in the IMEC corridor (e.g.,
supplier.imec.1). - Level 4 — Capability-Verified: Claimed technical/operational capabilities are independently validated.
- Level 5 — Transaction-Authorised: Fully authorized to execute specified commercial activities.
Human Governance & Pilot Roadmap
Agents may discover, communicate, request information, and negotiate quotes, but are programmatically restricted from binding contracts or committing funds without explicit human approval.
Proposed Reference Pilot Phases
Indian Reference Implementation
Establish India.Agentic-AI.Trade connected to in.1 and verified Indian organizations via Tradologie.
AI Agent Registration
Register verified AI Agents into the imec.1 corridor registry with defined capability profiles.
IBM ADS Integration
Link imec.1 identities with IBM ADS to manage enterprise workflows and policy enforcement.
AI Agents Automation
Execute approved workflow automation while maintaining mandatory human sign-off gates.
Cross-Border Demonstration
Demonstrate automated discovery and interaction between a verified Indian Agent and a counterpart in another IMEC jurisdiction.
Strategic Realization
Adding an AI Agent Identity Corridor on top of the physical, trade, energy, and digital corridors ensures that next-generation software agents operating across IMEEC remain:
Discoverable
Interoperable
Governable
Accountable
National namespaces establish identity. imec.1 establishes corridor participation. Enterprise platforms orchestrate. Humans retain accountability.