What is A2A?
Agent-to-Agent Protocol (A2A) is an open standard developed by Google in April 2025, enabling communication and collaboration between AI agents built on different platforms. Over 150 organizations (including Salesforce, SAP, Microsoft) support this protocol.
A2A vs MCP — differences
MCP connects an AI agent to tools and data (vertical integration). A2A connects agent to agent (horizontal integration). Analogy: MCP is like connecting a monitor to a computer, A2A is like a network connecting multiple computers. Both protocols complement each other.
Enterprise applications
In large organizations, different departments use different AI platforms. A2A allows an HR agent (e.g., Workday) to delegate tasks to a financial agent (e.g., SAP) without custom integration. It's the foundation of interoperability in the enterprise AI ecosystem.