Commerce Operations Foundation
The Commerce Operations Foundation is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit that stewards the Order Network eXchange (onX), an open MCP-based standard for order, inventory, and fulfillment interoperability across brands, OMS/WMS vendors, 3PLs, and AI agents.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2025
- Headquarters—
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Commerce Operations Foundation does
The Commerce Operations Foundation is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 2025 to steward the Order Network eXchange (onX), an open standard for post-purchase commerce operations. It serves brands, OMS/WMS vendors, 3PL providers, AI agent platforms, and commerce technology companies by providing a vendor-neutral specification for how orders, products, inventory, shipments, and returns are exchanged across selling channels, fulfillment systems, and AI agents. At launch, more than 50 companies were participating as members, representing over $1 trillion in annual GMV, with a stated target of exceeding 100 members by Q1 FY26.
The core product, onX, is built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP) and defines 14 MCP tools and 9 shared resources covering order capture, exchange, shipment, and inventory reservation. It replaces brittle point-to-point APIs and EDI-style document exchanges with structured, event-driven data flows (Created, Accepted, Packed, Shipped, Delivered) and supports namespace-based extensibility. The Foundation distributes the specification, reference server, and adapters openly on GitHub, and provides implementation documentation covering adapter design, security, and versioning. Governance is shared across a nine-member Board of Directors, a Technical Steering Committee, and Industry and Vendor Advisory Boards.
The Foundation operates a membership-based revenue model, with dues collected across Board, Advisory, and Technical Steering tiers; pricing is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is open-source via GitHub for self-service adopters, with deeper engagement requiring membership. The product roadmap extends into returns/split shipments (Q1 2026) and inventory reservations (Q2 2026), broadening the standard's functional coverage in the year following launch.
Commerce Operations Foundation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Commerce Operations Foundation
- Legal name
- Commerce Operations Foundation
- Website
- https://commerceopsfoundation.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2025
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The Commerce Operations Foundation is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit that stewards the Order Network eXchange (onX), an open MCP-based standard for order, inventory, and fulfillment interoperability across brands, OMS/WMS vendors, 3PLs, and AI agents.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Commerce Operations Foundation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Membership Dues: The Foundation generates revenue through membership fees. Companies can join at various levels including Board of Directors (9 members), Industry/Vendor Advisory Boards, and Technical Steering Committee. Membership enables participation in shaping the standard and ecosystem influence.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Board of Directors membership - 9 members with legal responsibility for governance |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Industry and Vendor Advisory Boards |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Technical Steering Committee |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels7 records
Commerce Operations Foundation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Commerce Operations Foundation stewards the Order Network eXchange (onX), an open, vendor-neutral specification built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP). onX defines 14 MCP tools (capture order, exchange order, ship order, reserve inventory, etc.) and 9 shared resources (orders, lines, parties, payments, shipments, products, inventory, customers, returns) that provide a universal operational language for AI agents, commerce platforms, OMS, WMS, ERP, and 3PL systems to exchange order data after the buy button. The standard is freely available on GitHub, and adoption grants instant interoperability with all other member companies.
Product overview
The Commerce Operations Foundation offers the onX (Order Network eXchange) as its core product — an open standard for order data exchange built on the Model Context Protocol. This is supported by the MCP Reference Server (a developer tool with sample code and validation examples), Implementation Documentation (guides for adapters, security, and versioning), and a Membership Program for governance participation. The product portfolio works together to enable interoperability between selling channels, fulfillment systems, AI agents, ERPs, OMS, WMS, and 3PLs through a unified operational language.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- onX (Order Network eXchange): The flagship open standard for exchanging order data across systems, built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to enable seamless interaction between AI agents and order management systems.
Products and services
- Order Network eXchange (onX) Standard Open, vendor-neutral specification built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP) that provides a common language for selling channels to communicate with fulfillment channels. Version 1.0 defines 14 MCP tools (capture order, exchange order, ship order, reserve inventory, etc.) and 9 shared resources (orders, lines, parties, payments, shipments, products, inventory, customers, returns). Adoption is freely available via GitHub and grants instant interoperability with all member companies.
- MCP Reference Server A reference implementation of the onX standard providing sample code, test tools, and validation examples. Developers can use it to understand how AI agents query orders via MCP tools, map existing payloads to onX objects, and validate implementations against sample responses. JavaScript SDK supported; MCP available.
- Implementation Documentation Technical resources for developers and architects implementing the onX standard, including guides for adapter design (translating fields, normalizing enums), security practices (masking PII, signing messages, rotating secrets), and versioning strategies covering semantic versioning and migration notes.
- Membership Program Vendor-neutral membership program enabling companies to participate in governance through the Board of Directors (9 members), Technical Steering Committee, Vendor Advisory Board, and Industry Advisory Board. Members shape the standard, participate in working groups, and influence the direction of the Commerce Operations Foundation. Membership terms use multi-year contracts.
Quantifiable outcome
- Adding new selling channel goes from weeks/months to instant interoperability
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Commerce Operations Foundation
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Commerce Operations Foundation technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability4 records
Feature5 records
Commerce Operations Foundation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
39 partnerships are on record, tiered core and member.
- Pipe17coreCo-founded by Kelly Goetsch (also Founding President of Commerce Operations Foundation) and Mo Afshar (CEO). Pipe17 is a founding member and integral to the Foundation's leadership and vision.
- Manhattan AssociatescoreSanjeev Siotia, CTO of Manhattan Associates, serves on the Board of Directors. Manhattan Associates is a major supply chain and inventory management software provider.
- commercetoolscoreDirk Hoerig, Founder of commercetools, serves on the Board of Directors. commercetools is a leading commerce platform provider.
- IBM SterlingcoreSudhir Balebail, Program Director of IBM Sterling, serves on the Board of Directors. IBM Sterling provides supply chain and fulfillment solutions.
- Kibo CommercecoreRam Venkataraman, CEO of Kibo Commerce, serves on the Board of Directors. Kibo is a unified commerce platform provider.
- RydercoreAaron Terrell, Group Director at Ryder, serves on the Board of Directors. Ryder is a major logistics and transportation company.
- LogitechcoreKevin Yip, Head of eCommerce at Logitech, serves on the Board of Directors. Logitech is a consumer electronics company with significant e-commerce operations.
- ShipHeromemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. ShipHero is a fulfillment and warehouse management platform.
- PatchworksmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Patchworks is an integration platform for commerce.
- RadialmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Radial provides fulfillment and payment solutions. CEO Tom Schmitt quoted: 'AI is transforming how orders start, but fulfillment is what delivers on that promise.'
- Fluent CommercememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Fluent Commerce provides distributed order management.
- Deck CommercememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Deck Commerce provides order management solutions.
- OneStockmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. OneStock provides order management and fulfillment orchestration.
- OrdergroovememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Ordergroove provides subscription and replenishment solutions.
- Elastic PathmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Elastic Path provides commerce platform solutions.
- ShopwarememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Shopware is an open-source commerce platform.
- MACH AlliancememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. MACH Alliance promotes open, best-of-breed technology ecosystems.
- LogiwamemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Logiwa provides warehouse and fulfillment management.
- Cin7memberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Cin7 provides inventory and order management.
- FulfillmenttoolsmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Fulfillmenttools provides fulfillment automation solutions.
- Li & FungmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Li & Fung is a global supply chain solutions provider.
- ActindomemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Actindo provides warehouse management solutions.
- Virto CommercememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Virto Commerce provides enterprise commerce platform.
- MasonHubmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. MasonHub provides fulfillment services.
- ShipWirememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. ShipWire provides cloud-based fulfillment.
- NextuplememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Nextuple provides order management consulting.
- AiometrixmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Aiometrix provides supply chain analytics.
- DavincimemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Davinci provides fulfillment solutions.
- Quiet PlatformsmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Quiet Platforms provides fulfillment services.
- OriummemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Orium provides retail technology solutions.
- ChordmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Chord provides commerce solutions.
- APIWorxmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. APIWorx provides API integration services.
- Commerce LabmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Commerce Lab provides commerce consulting.
- TidalmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Tidal provides fulfillment solutions.
- Buyer24.aimemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Buyer24.ai provides AI-powered procurement solutions.
- AllbirdsmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Allbirds is a DTC footwear and apparel brand.
- Vitamin ShoppememberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Vitamin Shoppe is a health and wellness retailer.
- IPSYmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. IPSY is a beauty subscription service.
- Barrett DistributionmemberMember company in the onX ecosystem. Barrett Distribution provides third-party logistics.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Commerce Operations Foundation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- GS1: Global standards organization for supply chain and retail barcodes/data exchange. Comparable mission of enabling commerce interoperability, though GS1 focuses on physical product identification rather than order operations.
- Linux Foundation: Umbrella foundation housing numerous open-source projects across industries. Comparable nonprofit, vendor-neutral governance model for stewarding shared technical standards.
- Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF): CNCF stewards Kubernetes and other cloud-native open standards under vendor-neutral governance. Directly comparable governance and adoption flywheel model; differs in that it operates in cloud infrastructure rather than commerce operations.
- OASIS Open: Standards body developing open protocols across multiple domains including commerce and supply chain. Comparable nonprofit governance model for stewarding vendor-neutral technical specifications.
- Stripe (commerce infrastructure): Major commerce infrastructure provider developing agentic payment protocols. Comparable in enabling AI-agent-driven commerce workflows, though operates as a commercial platform rather than an open standards body.
- Shopify (Shopify Functions / Order APIs): Dominant commerce platform with proprietary order and checkout APIs. Comparable in defining how orders flow between merchants and fulfillment; a potential standard adopter or competing standard-setter.
Emerging players
- Agentic Commerce Foundation: Emerging standards initiative focused on agentic commerce protocols. Directly comparable in addressing AI-driven commerce standards; overlaps in mission space with onX's focus on agent-to-fulfillment interoperability.
- OpenAPI Initiative (under Linux Foundation): Governs the OpenAPI Specification for describing REST APIs. Comparable open-standard governance model, though OpenAPI is a general-purpose API description standard rather than a commerce-specific protocol.
Direct peers
- commercetools: Headless commerce platform whose founder sits on the COF Board. Operates in adjacent order management infrastructure space and is both a peer (provides commerce integration primitives) and a strategic partner/adopter of onX.
- MACH Alliance: Industry alliance promoting Microservices, API-first, Cloud-native, and Headless commerce architectures. Directly comparable as a vendor-neutral membership body influencing commerce technology standards; COF is even an onX member.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Commerce Operations Foundation social profiles
Digital presenceCommerce Operations Foundation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Commerce Operations Foundation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Commerce Operations Foundation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Commerce Operations Foundation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Commerce Operations Foundation
What does Commerce Operations Foundation do?
The Commerce Operations Foundation stewards the Order Network eXchange (onX), an open, vendor-neutral specification built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP). onX defines 14 MCP tools (capture order, exchange order, ship order, reserve inventory, etc.) and 9 shared resources (orders, lines, parties, payments, shipments, products, inventory, customers, returns) that provide a universal operational language for AI agents, commerce platforms, OMS, WMS, ERP, and 3PL systems to exchange order data after the buy button. The standard is freely available on GitHub, and adoption grants instant interoperability with all other member companies.
Is Commerce Operations Foundation a public or private company?
Commerce Operations Foundation is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Commerce Operations Foundation founded?
Commerce Operations Foundation was founded in 2025. It employs 11 to 50 people.
How does Commerce Operations Foundation make money?
One revenue line is on record: membership Dues.
Who are Commerce Operations Foundation's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are GS1, Linux Foundation, Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), OASIS Open, Stripe (commerce infrastructure) and Shopify (Shopify Functions / Order APIs). Emerging players are Agentic Commerce Foundation and OpenAPI Initiative (under Linux Foundation). Direct peers are commercetools and MACH Alliance.
Does Commerce Operations Foundation have an API?
Yes. The onX standard provides MCP (Model Context Protocol) tools for AI agents to interact with order management systems. The reference implementation includes tools for order operations such as get-orders, capture order, exchange order, ship order, and reserve inventory. Developers can send test tools calls via the MCP protocol using the reference server. The specification defines 14 MCP tools and 9 shared resources for actions such as capture order, exchange order, ship order, and reserve inventory. Developer documentation is at github.com/commerce-operations-foundation/mcp-reference-server.