Major change on the internet: New extensions are on the way

A new era of expansion may be beginning for the internet's address system. ICANN, responsible for the global coordination of domain names, has begun the evaluation process for more than 1,600 applications for new generic top-level domains (gTLDs).

Following the application period that ended on August 12, 2026, the specific extensions requested have not yet been disclosed to the public. ICANN plans to announce the list of applications within nine weeks at the latest, depending on the completion of administrative checks.

Although not all applications have been officially shared, some companies and organizations have begun to announce their own requests. Link Freedom Group announced that it has applied for 316 different domain name extensions. The company's list includes extensions associated with artificial intelligence and technology, such as .slop, .token, .agentic, and .agi.

Other announced requests include more general or unusual expressions such as .hype, .therapy, .tea, and .itiswhatitis. However, it is not expected that all applications will be accepted; which extensions will meet internet users will become clear at the end of the evaluation process.

LAST EXPANSION ROUND WAS HELD IN 2012

The last application round of this scale by ICANN was held in 2012. At that time, approximately 1,900 applications were made, and nearly 1,200 of them were approved. By the end of the process, in addition to company-specific extensions, geographical domain names such as .africa and sectoral ones like .bank were included in the internet ecosystem.

For this reason, the new round is seen as one of the most significant expansion steps in the domain name system in 14 years. The application process also draws attention due to its high cost. ICANN charges a $227,000 evaluation fee for each application; this amount can increase for riskier or more complex files.

The disclosure of the applications does not mean that the new extensions will be available for use immediately. First, technical, administrative, and legal evaluations must be completed. The transition of accepted extensions to the actual usage phase will be spread over a longer timeline.

In addition to new gTLDs for the public internet, ICANN had also brought the .internal extension to the agenda, which institutions and device manufacturers can use on private networks. Announced in 2024, this extension is among the addressing options designed to be used outside the internet.

News Source: 12punto