FAQ

Every answer your handle gives is cryptographically signed — sealed with a key that only username.md controls, verifiable against public keys anyone can fetch. When an app, a person, or an AI agent looks you up, they don't have to take the page's word for it: the math proves the answer really came from your handle and wasn't tampered with. A profile page says who you are. A signed profile proves it. And it goes further: anyone can type a GitHub URL into a bio, but on username.md you can prove it — verify a domain with a DNS record, bind your Bluesky account, or import your old Keybase proofs, and each check becomes a signed claim anyone can verify, even offline. (For developers: RFC 9421 HTTP Message Signatures, did:web, W3C Verifiable Credentials — details in the developer docs.)

More and more of what visits the web isn't a person — it's software acting for a person. Agents fetch username.md/you as JSON or Markdown, check the signature, and get your links, your keys, and your rules for how you want to be contacted. You publish once, on your terms. (Agents get their own instructions too — your handle serves its own llms.txt.)

Every handle includes [email protected], which forwards to the inbox you choose. You can also hand out per-service aliases like [email protected], so you always know which service is writing to you — and which one leaked your address. Forwarding is live today and included with your handle. Setup steps are in the getting-started guide.

Live now: your profile page and the free-read API (JSON, Markdown, JSON-LD), signed responses, verified claims via DNS TXT, Bluesky binding, Keybase import, email forwarding, and the developer docs. In development: presence records, the 1–3 character auction, and handle transfers (transfers ship at launch). The full truth table lives on the how-it-works page.

If you had a Keybase profile, you can bring your proofs with you. Point the importer at your old Keybase username and preview what it finds — nothing imports without your confirmation. Your social proofs and PGP key are re-verified and re-signed as claims under your handle, so they stay checkable by anyone. The walkthrough is in the getting-started guide.

Your handle can bind to your Bluesky account, so your name across the ATProto network becomes @you.username.md. It's a DID-level binding, not a mirror: Bluesky resolves the name through your handle, so the same verified identity answers everywhere. Binding is live today — see the getting-started guide for the setup steps.

Two products, one identity. USERNAME.md is the lightweight handle — a router that maps your one name to every service you use. about-me.md is the full home base — your public profile, signed claims, personal data vault, and the surface that mediates AI-agent access on your behalf. Use USERNAME.md alone if you only want the lookup table; add about-me.md when you want the full profile + agent layer.

You can sell it for profit. When you release your handle, it becomes available on timedbuy.com where a 7-day auction begins for your handle. The highest bidder wins, and you receive the proceeds.

Short handles are premium because they are highly desirable and fewer letters to type or remember. 4-character handles are premium at a one-time $99; 1–3 character handles go to a future auction (in development). Visit the Pricing page for more information.

It gets posted on timedbuy.com for a 7-day auction. Anyone can bid on it, and the highest bidder claims the handle when the auction ends.

Handle transfers ship at launch. Transfers will be permanent. Once you relinquish your handle, it's gone — ownership transfers immediately and cannot be undone.

Yes. If you own a domain (e.g. yourname.com), USERNAME.md can resolve to did:web:yourname.com and your handle becomes an alias. Your identity is portable — we route to you, not the other way around.

Your USERNAME.md handle is your universal identity across the Agentic Web — the growing part of the web where software agents act on people's behalf. When you claim a handle here, the same identity is recognized by about-me.md (for your full profile + vault) and preferences.sh (for syncing settings). No separate sign-up needed.

Standard handles (5+ characters) reserve for a one-time $9 during founding access. Premium handles (4 characters) are a one-time $99, and 1–3 character handles go to a future auction (in development). See the Pricing page for details. Founding access: $9 reserves your handle today. The profile API, signed responses, and Bluesky binding are live now; full refund if we don't ship the rest by 2026-09-30.

A formal reseller/agency program is on the roadmap, but we're not taking resellers yet. What's available today: technical partners can build on our open API and MCP server, and a referral program is launching soon — invite a friend and you'll both earn account credit. Want early access to either? Email [email protected].