CopilotKit

A2A and MCP Handshake

AG-UI handshakes enable seamless protocol interoperability

A2A and MCP Handshake

AG-UI now includes handshakes with both MCP and A2A protocols, ensuring smooth interoperability across the full agentic stack.

What Are Protocol Handshakes?#

Protocol handshakes allow AG-UI to seamlessly communicate with agents using different interaction protocols. This means you can connect your frontend to agents that internally use MCP or A2A without any additional configuration.

Benefits#

Full Interoperability#

If your host agent connects to subagents using MCP or A2A, their UI properties can be propagated all the way through to the user-facing application.

Security and Control#

Handshakes preserve full security, policy, and observability controls throughout the communication chain.

Simplified Architecture#

No need to choose between protocols—use them all together in a single application.

How It Works#

  1. Frontend connects via AG-UI - Your application uses AG-UI to connect to the host agent
  2. Host agent uses MCP/A2A - The host agent can communicate with subagents using MCP or A2A
  3. UI properties propagate - Generative UI and other properties flow back to your frontend automatically

Learn More#