Compare open source agent identity management with AWS Cognito's user authentication service. Find the right solution for your AI agent security needs.
by OpenA2A
Purpose-built for AI agents. Cryptographic identity, capability-based access, and continuous trust scoring. Open source and self-hosted.
by Amazon Web Services
Managed user authentication for web and mobile apps. User pools, identity pools, social login, and MFA for human users in the AWS ecosystem.
AWS Cognito authenticates human users in web and mobile applications (login flows, OAuth, social providers). AIM manages AI agent identity (cryptographic proof, behavioral trust, capability enforcement). Cognito asks "is this person who they claim to be?" while AIM asks "is this agent trustworthy?"
| Feature | AIM | AWS Cognito |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Focus | AI agent identity | Human user authentication |
| Licensing | Apache-2.0 (Free) | Pay-per-use (MAU pricing) |
| Deployment | Self-hosted or Cloud | AWS managed only |
| Cryptographic Agent Identity | Ed25519 per agent | Not designed for agents |
| Continuous Trust Scoring | 8-factor real-time | Not available |
| Capability-Based Access | Code-level enforcement | Groups/roles for humans |
| MCP Server Attestation | Native support | Not supported |
| AI Framework Integration | LangChain, CrewAI, etc. | Not applicable |
| User Pools (Human Directory) | Not the focus | Core feature |
| Social Login | Not applicable | Google, Facebook, etc. |
| Federated Identity (AWS) | Not applicable | Identity Pools |
| Vendor Lock-in | None (portable) | AWS ecosystem |
| Source Code Access | Full access | Closed source |
| Cost Model | Free forever | Free tier, then $0.0055/MAU+ |
AIM asks: "Is this AI agent trustworthy?"
Cognito asks: "Is this person who they claim to be?"
with AIM
with Cognito
AIM secures AI agents. Cognito authenticates human users. Different tools for different jobs.
from aim_sdk import secure
# Register and secure an AI agent
agent = secure(
"data-analyst",
capabilities=[
"database:read",
"api:call"
]
)
# Agent has cryptographic identity
# Capabilities are enforced
# Trust is continuously scored// Authenticate a human user
import { Amplify }
from 'aws-amplify';
Amplify.configure({
Auth: {
region: 'us-east-1',
userPoolId: 'us-east-1_xxx',
userPoolWebClientId: 'xxx'
}
});
// Human signs in via UI
await Auth.signIn(email, pass);AIM and Cognito solve different problems and complement each other perfectly:
Human identity (Cognito) + Agent identity (AIM) = Complete identity coverage for AI-powered AWS applications.
If you're building AI agents with Amazon Bedrock, Cognito handles user authentication to your application, but it doesn't manage the identity of the AI agents themselves. AIM provides the missing layer: cryptographic identity, capability enforcement, and trust scoring for your Bedrock-powered agents.
AIM provides what Cognito can't: purpose-built identity for AI agents. Open source, self-hosted, free forever.
Apache-2.0 license • Self-hosted • Works alongside your AWS Cognito setup