Reveal Day: the 2026 round's 1,615 applications, in full
On 7 October ICANN published every application in its 2026 new gTLD round: 1,615 applications for 986 strings. What the list shows, where the fights are, and what happens between now and next March.
At 18:00 UTC on 7 October 2026, ICANN published the applications in its 2026 new gTLD round: every applied-for string, the entity behind each one, the public parts of the applications and the contention sets. It is the first time since 2012 that anyone outside ICANN has seen the whole field.
Publication is not approval. Every application on the list is still in pre-evaluation, none has been granted, and ICANN itself says the final list is only fixed on String Confirmation Day. What follows is what the published list says, counted from ICANN's own export; every string and every applicant is in our tracker.
Reveal Day, in figures
From 1,663 to 1,615
The window closed on 12 August with 1,663 applications submitted. On 22 September ICANN confirmed that 1,616 had paid their evaluation fee and would proceed, and the list published on Reveal Day holds 1,615. Our tracker reads ICANN's export of the same day, which lists 1,614 primary applications from 480 applicants: the one-application gap is ICANN's to settle on String Confirmation Day.
Most applications also name a replacement string, a second choice that only comes into play if the first does not proceed: 1,169 of them in the export. Applicants had from 8 to 21 October to switch to it.
What kind of names
Where the applicants are
Where the fights are
At Reveal Day ICANN's contention sets group identical strings only; string-similarity review can still add to them later. Even so, 891 applications, more than half the round, are already in one of 263 sets. Most sets are small: 114 strings have exactly two applicants, 64 have three.
The largest is .agent, with 13 applicants, Google, Meta and OpenAI among them, plus a community application from Open Agent Registry. Then .bit with 11, and .api, .brand and .hub with 10 each.
Every string with five applicants or more
| String | Applicants |
|---|---|
| .agent | 13 |
| .bit | 11 |
| .api | 10 |
| .brand | 10 |
| .hub | 10 |
| .pop | 9 |
| .robot | 9 |
| .max | 8 |
| .official | 8 |
| .pod | 8 |
| .zen | 8 |
| .agi | 7 |
| .ask | 7 |
| .connect | 7 |
| .firm | 7 |
| .key | 7 |
| .lab | 7 |
| .mind | 7 |
| .therapy | 7 |
| .vibe | 7 |
| .fix | 6 |
| .gaming | 6 |
| .gen | 6 |
| .good | 6 |
| .human | 6 |
| .labs | 6 |
| .mart | 6 |
| .omg | 6 |
| .portal | 6 |
| .share | 6 |
| .wealth | 6 |
| .aid | 5 |
| .air | 5 |
| .asi | 5 |
| .craft | 5 |
| .crypto | 5 |
| .etc | 5 |
| .fab | 5 |
| .get | 5 |
| .gym | 5 |
| .hello | 5 |
| .list | 5 |
| .mcp | 5 |
| .merch | 5 |
| .ops | 5 |
| .project | 5 |
| .robotics | 5 |
| .sign | 5 |
| .sys | 5 |
| .tap | 5 |
| .tea | 5 |
| .way | 5 |
| .yes | 5 |
A round shaped by AI
In 2012 the most contested string was .app. In 2026 it is .agent, and the AI vocabulary runs through the top of the list: .robot (9 applicants), .agi (7), .asi, .mcp and .robotics (5 each), .gpt and .model (3), .llm (2), and 人工智能, Chinese for artificial intelligence.
The AI companies applied very differently. OpenAI filed 15 applications, mixing its brands (.openai, .chatgpt, .gpt, .codex) with open generic strings such as .agent, .agi, .asi, .mcp, .model and .skill. Google, through its registry Charleston Road, filed 39, from .gemini and .deepmind to .agent, .api and a community application for .mcp. Meta filed 18, including .agent, .superintelligence and .metaai. Anthropic applied for its two brands only, .anthropic and .claude.
Who applied for the most
Portfolio registries dominate the volume. Link Freedom Group filed 158 applications and XYZ.COM 139, ahead of Registry Services (77), Intercap Registry (71), Radix (46), ShortDot (40) and Google's Charleston Road (39). At the other end, 343 applicants filed for a single string: mostly brands, cities and communities applying for their own name.
What happens next
- 7 October 2026Reveal DayICANN publishes the applications and the contention sets.
- 8–21 October 2026Replacement periodApplicants with an eligible replacement string can switch to it.
- 17 November 2026 · upcomingString Confirmation DayThe final list of applied-for strings and the updated contention sets.
- 27 November 2026 · upcomingWithdrawal with a 65% refundThe last day to withdraw and recover 65% of the evaluation fee, 23:59 UTC.
- 17 Nov 2026 – 16 Mar 2027 · upcomingCommunity input and objectionsPublic comments and formal objections on the published applications.
Where internet.Best sits in this
internet.Best applied for one string: .socialmedia. On the published list it has a single applicant, us, and sits in no contention set.