Open BrandDefinition
ResourcesOBDS / 4.1.3

Read the contract.
Run the example.

Specification, implementation and evidence, with their roles kept explicit. OBDS governs applicable brand truth; applications carry decisions into execution.

Informative guide · OBDS 4.1.3

01 / Specification

OBDS 4.1.3 is the current release.

Stable, 12 September 2026. Use the versioned specification and release package as the authoritative implementation contracts.

Normative specificationOne versioned document.Complete release packageReference implementation, schemas and conformance suite.ArchitectureThe existing Foundation and optional capabilities.Schema indexPublished identifiers and versioned contracts.Capability registryOptional capabilities and their declared contracts.Conformance and reproductionVersion-specific requirements and test commands.
02 / Extend

One specification. One Foundation. Optional capabilities.

Open Brand Definition is an open specification for governed brand truth and AI creation. The Foundation is always required. It defines Brand Elements, knowledge states, rules, value contracts, scope, provenance and integrity. Everything beyond it is declared, optional and separately testable.

Runtime

Compiled Runtime

Build plans, compiled context, validity windows.

Runtime

Context Delivery

Slot content, token budgets, human-readable views.

Runtime

Context Assembly

Retrieval, no-hit resolution, the exact model input package.

Output

Text

Checks before and after generation for written output.

Output

Visual Operations

Geometry evidence and the four deterministic visual checks.

Output

Composition

Roles, identity hierarchy, omission priority, relations.

Content

Claims

Claims, evidence and disclaimers as governed records.

Content

Localisation

Locale-scoped truth, transcreation and market variance.

Process

Operations

Governed records, release approval, assurance and lineage.

Foundation conformance does not depend on one vendor, one model or one database. Vendor extensions stay optional and namespaced. Breaking semantics require a new major version. The specification is CC BY 4.0 and the implementation layer is Apache 2.0, so an independent implementation needs no permission and cannot be cut off. Section 11 has the detail.

03 / Implement

Start with a working example.

Foundation is the required base. Add optional capabilities only when needed. The examples use Compiled Runtime to demonstrate both successful compilation and the fail-closed boundary.

Implementer quickstartThe smallest conforming implementation.Runnable examplesOne compiles. One intentionally stops.Reference implementationCode, fixtures and conformance tests.How it worksAuthority, applicability, required truth and evidence.
04 / Authoring

Prepare truth for review.

Non-normative curation guidance for source material, candidates, evidence and human approval. Reference tooling is being prepared for public release. Automatic ADMIT is not production-cleared.

Authoring companionThe source is evidence, not approval.Governance completenessWhy apparently complete evidence may still omit a restriction.
05 / Research

Inspect what was actually tested.

Research overviewMethods, findings and known limits. Non-normative.SUPABRAND Round 4Mixed: semantic agreement, incomplete end-to-end execution.Deterministic result hashesBounded cross-language reproducibility.Communications benchmarkIncluding the published adversarial failure.Known limitsWhat declared truth cannot establish.EcosystemOBDS primarily resolves and governs.
06 / Project

A versioned specification. A separate website.

The website is explanatory. Its current publication is checked separately from frozen OBDS 4.1.3 release evidence. A website update does not revise a released specification or certify a production integration.

ChangelogCurrent release and historical changes.MigrationExisting valid packages require no migration.Release historyAll published versions on GitHub.Governance and contributionHow specification changes are handled.Current website recordSeparate website inventory and hashes, not release evidence.Historical publication recordPreserved record; its hashes describe the earlier public surface.

Contribution guide · Previous release: 4.1.2 · All historical specification links

07 / Licensing

Two standard licences. Nothing to ask for.

OBDS is released under CC BY 4.0 and the Apache License 2.0. Neither licence text is modified, both are published here, and commercial implementation needs no permission from anyone.

01
Specification and documentation CC BY 4.0
Covers

The normative specification, the architecture, changelog, migration and quickstart documents, the governance and contribution documents, and this website.

You may

Share and adapt it for any purpose, commercial included, with credit, a link to the licence and a note on what you changed.

02
Implementation layer Apache License 2.0
Covers

The 35 existing public contracts plus optional Task Facts, the release metadata, the reference implementation, the conformance suite and the machine-readable examples.

You may

Use, modify, distribute and sublicense it, including inside closed-source and commercial products, with a patent grant included.

03
Commercial implementation Permitted
Covers

Paid client delivery, agency and consulting work, production use, SaaS and managed services, commercial products and integrations.

You may

All of it, with no separate agreement, no evaluation period and no distinction between commercial and non-commercial users.

04
Official marks Separately governed
Covers

The project name as your product name, the logo, claims of official status, and any future certification claim. No registration is claimed and no certification programme is live.

Always allowed

Truthful compatibility statements. "Implements OBDS 1.0" and a package called obds-parser need no permission. See TRADEMARKS.md.

Neither licence grants trademark rights, and that is deliberate rather than a loophole. CC BY 4.0 section 2(b)(2) and Apache 2.0 section 6 both exclude them. The line is drawn around who publishes the standard, not around who implements it.

Build it, ship it, sell it. No one has to say yes first.

Which licence applies to which material, file by file.
The unmodified licence text as published by Creative Commons.
The unmodified licence text as published by the Apache Software Foundation.
What you may say without asking, and the short list that is governed separately.
How the specification changes, how versions work, and what happens if the publisher stops.
How to propose a change. Inbound licensing equals outbound. No contributor agreement to sign.
ideas

No claim is made to the underlying ideas, principles or methods. Building a different system from similar ideas has never required permission and does not require it now. Independent implementation is not restricted, and describing it accurately is not restricted either.

Questions about use
lets@killthedragon.com