acp-intent-traces

ACP Intent Traces

Before writing code

Fetch live docs:

1. Web-search site:github.com agentic-commerce-protocol rfcs intent_traces for the intent traces RFC
2. Fetch https://developers.openai.com/commerce/specs/checkout/ for how intent traces integrate with checkout
3. Web-search site:github.com agentic-commerce-protocol spec json-schema intent for the schema

Conceptual Architecture

What Intent Traces Are

Intent traces are a built-in ACP extension that provides structured cart abandonment signals. When a buyer abandons a checkout, the agent sends a trace explaining why — enabling merchants to understand conversion barriers and automate recovery.

10 Reason Codes

| Code | Meaning | |------|---------| | price_sensitivity | Total was too expensive | | shipping_cost | Shipping cost was a barrier | | shipping_speed | Delivery time was too slow | | product_fit | Product didn't match buyer's needs | | trust_security | Buyer didn't trust the merchant/payment | | returns_policy | Return/refund policy was inadequate | | payment_options | Preferred payment method unavailable | | comparison | Buyer is comparison shopping | | timing_deferred | Buyer wants to purchase later | | other | Doesn't fit other categories |

How It Works

1. Buyer initiates checkout but doesn't complete
2. Agent detects abandonment (session timeout, explicit cancellation, navigation away)
3. Agent sends intent trace via POST /checkout_sessions/{id}/cancel, including a single reason_code (required enum string, exactly one per trace)
4. Merchant receives the trace and can:
5. Aggregate for analytics
6. Trigger automated recovery (email, discount offer)
7. Adjust pricing/shipping strategy

Privacy Considerations

• Intent traces contain behavioral signals — handle per GDPR/CCPA
• Only collect traces when the buyer has consented to data collection
• Don't store personally identifiable information in trace metadata
• Aggregate traces for analytics rather than individual tracking

Extension Negotiation

Like all extensions, intent traces must be negotiated:

1. Agent includes intent_traces in capabilities.extensions[]
2. Merchant confirms support
3. Only then are traces exchanged

Use Cases

• Cart abandonment analytics dashboards
• Automated recovery email workflows
• Dynamic pricing based on price sensitivity signals
• Shipping strategy optimization
• A/B testing checkout flows
• Conversion funnel analysis

Additional Trace Fields

• trace_summary — Optional free-text summary of the abandonment reason (max 500 characters)
• metadata — Optional flat key-value map for additional context (string keys and string values only)

Write-Only Behavior

Intent traces are write-only — they are sent on the POST /checkout_sessions/{id}/cancel endpoint and are never echoed back in GET responses. This prevents information leakage and ensures traces are used only for analytics and recovery workflows.

Best Practices

• Send traces on every abandonment — even other is better than no signal
• Each trace has a single reason_code (required enum string); if the buyer has multiple reasons, choose the most significant one
• Process traces asynchronously — don't block the cancellation flow
• Build aggregate dashboards before automated recovery
• Test trace collection end-to-end with the agent platform
• Respect buyer privacy — anonymize before long-term storage

Fetch the intent traces RFC for exact trace payload structure, reason code definitions, and integration points before implementing.