Machine-readable brand specifications solve different problems. BRAND.md is a single readable brand file, the Brand Context Protocol publishes and discovers brand packages, MRBS structures a brand identity system, and OBDS decides which governed truth applies to a task and whether it may run.
Different problems, not better and worse.
This page exists so the category can be classified correctly. It is written by the OBDS publisher, so treat the OBDS row as self-description and check the others against their own primary sources, which are linked on every claim.
Every statement below was read from each project's own specification or official site on 5 September 2026, not from memory or from secondary write-ups. These projects move quickly and versions change; the version we read is stated in each row. If a description here is out of date or wrong, tell us at lets@killthedragon.com and we will correct it.
What each one is, in its own words
| Project | Self-description, verbatim | Read as | Version read | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRAND.md | "An open standard for brand identity files. A single markdown file with YAML frontmatter that replaces 50-page brand guides." | Lightweight brand context for AI tools. One file in the project root, four layers: Strategy, Voice, Visual and optional Governance. | 0.3.0 | MIT |
| Brand Context Protocol | "The open standard for encoding brand identity as a portable, machine-readable package." | Publishing and discovery of brand context. A root document at /.well-known/brand.md with daughter files, self-hosted or registry-backed. |
0.8 | Spec CC BY 4.0, schema and code MIT |
| MRBS | "An open specification for AI-ready brand identity systems." | A structured machine-readable brand system. A brand.manifest.json entry point with component directories and three conformance levels. |
1.0.0 | Apache 2.0 |
| Brando Schema | "open-source vocabulary for structuring brand identity, governance policies, and content guidelines in machine-readable formats" | A schema.org-extending vocabulary with a controls layer. A document triad: Markdown body, YAML frontmatter and a JSON-LD sidecar, held in version control. | 1.3 | CC BY 4.0 with the W3C Royalty-Free Patent Policy |
| OBDS | "An open, implementation-ready specification for governed brand truth and AI creation." | Governed applicability, conflict resolution and fail-closed execution. Decides which approved truth applies to one task and whether it may run. | 4.0.3 | Spec CC BY 4.0, implementation Apache 2.0 |
What each specification defines
Read this as coverage, not as a score. A specification that does not define conflict resolution is not deficient; it is solving a different problem, and carrying machinery you do not need has a real cost.
| Defined in the specification text | BRAND.md 0.3.0 | Brando 1.3 | BCP 0.8 | MRBS 1.0.0 | OBDS 4.0.3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A machine-readable brand file format | Yes, Markdown with YAML frontmatter | Yes, Markdown with YAML frontmatter and a JSON-LD sidecar | Yes, Markdown core plus package extensions | Yes, JSON manifest plus component directories | Yes, Brand Manifest in YAML or JSON with JSON Schema contracts |
| Web discovery mechanism | File in the project root | Files in a version-controlled repository | Yes, /.well-known/brand.md, self-hosted or registry-backed |
Manifest entry point; registry offered by the platform | Not defined. OBDS governs what a build receives, not how it is published |
| Explicit unknown as a first-class state | Not addressed | Not addressed | Producers must omit or "record an explicit gap" and must not fabricate | Not addressed | Yes. Four Brand States: defined, unknown, not_defined, not_applicable |
| Scope-based applicability selection | Language and architecture fields; inheritance between files | Not addressed | Yes, by task type, rule tier, locale, product and campaign | Not addressed | Yes, a closed nine-dimension scope vocabulary resolved per build target |
| Time validity | Not addressed | Not addressed | Partly: logo entries must not be used past active_through; claims with proof_status expired must not be used |
Not addressed | Yes, validity.from and validity.to resolved against a declared asOf |
| Conflict resolution between competing rules | Inheritance rules between parent and child files | Not addressed | Precedence ordering, and consumers "SHOULD surface the conflict rather than comply silently"; no binding resolution algorithm | Not addressed | Yes, declared precedence plus conflict relevance for the specific target |
| Fail-closed execution on missing required truth | Not addressed for brand content | Not addressed | Partly: hard stops for integrity failures, expired logos and forbidden claims; missing optional guidance degrades gracefully | Not addressed | Yes. A target declares required truth; if it is not defined the build fails, no context is produced and no model is called |
| Runtime decision or evidence record | Not addressed | Not addressed | Not required of consumers; provider-side hashes and registry audit trails only | Not addressed | Yes, a Runtime Decision Record against a published schema, append-only |
| Reproducible artefact hashing | Not addressed | Not addressed | Provider-side source_hash for claims; asset integrity checks |
Not addressed | Yes, canonical hashing; the same manifest and build plan reproduce the same artefact hash |
| A named controls layer over rule strength | Not addressed | Yes: required, reviewed, escalated, discouraged, prohibited | Rule tiers: core, default, contextual | Not addressed | Rule obligation and enforcement, including prohibit and require_approval |
| Executable conformance suite published | Not published as part of the specification | Not addressed | Not published as part of the specification | Conformance levels defined; no executable suite published with the specification | Yes, 1158 cases and a Foundation conformance profile shipped in the release archive |
"Not addressed" means the specification text we read does not define the behaviour. It is not a claim that an implementation cannot do it, and it is not a criticism.
One candidate was left out. brand.json, part of the Advertising Context Protocol, describes itself as "machine-readable brand identity for the agentic advertising era" and publishes at /.well-known/brand.json. We read that page and the project root and could not find a version number or a licence for the format on either. A row we cannot pin to a version describes a moving target, so it is omitted rather than shipped with a hedge. If we have missed the right source, tell us and we will add it.