50+ letters of endorsement for .BITCOIN community application

We successfully submitted the ICANN .bitcoin TLD application for Community Priority Evaluation with over 50+ letters of endorsement from within the community, together with several high-level letters of recognition. ICANN will reveal our full application sometime in November 2026 pic.twitter.com/hlQaNEev4Q

— wiz 🇸🇻 (@wiz) August 12, 2026

New gTLD applicants start announcing their strings

A few new gTLD applicants published their list of strings recently:

1. Suffix Inc submits 89 new gTLD applications: Suffix Domains (but shows 13 only)
2. Link Freedom Group published a list of more than 300 strings but it remains unclear if these are Primary strings ro if that ist includes its secondary strings: https://lfg.link/
3. Internet.BEST announced its application for .SOCIALMEDIA : https://internet.best/socialmedia/
4. A tool published 3 new gTLD applications for .MEOW - .STATUS and .UWU : https://discovery.newtld.tools/
5. Previous applicant for .CLUB submitted an application for the .FACTORY new gTLD : https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/08/14/3345503/0/en/usa-made-in-america-announces-application-for-factory-generic-top-level-domain.html
6. Endpoint Domains published their first 8 applications (Primary strings) only for: .BIG - .FAB - .FART - .FTW - .HAPPY - .NSFW - .PRIVATE and .TRUE : https://endpointdomains.com/
7. Oinkadot submitted 25 new gTLD applications for: .anime - .bit - .bug - .cancel - .dine - .dragon - .ghost - .glitch - .hack - .heart - .king - .loop - .manga - .moon - .panda - .puff - .queen - .sign - .spice - .stack - .stay - .super - .weed - .wire and .zzz (website coming soon).
8. Wiz announced it has 50+ letters of endorsement (On Twitter) for the .BITCOIN new gTLD: https://www.gtld.club/2026/08/50-letters-of-endorsement-for-bitcoin.html
9. Vant Nexus will announce its list of applications soon: https://vantnexus.com

Round 3 new gTLD applications and the AI

Claude (the AI) was asked to prepare a business plan and financial model for the .BHANGRA (for Bhangra music community), and .LATTE (the coffee drink) new gTLDs.

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On .WEB : Cast your Vote.

Will the .WEB new gTLD register 1 million or more domains on the first day of General Availability?

You need to be signed in to vote on LinkedIn.

Struggling to find the right strings?

As the TAMS application submission deadline approaches, many applicants are putting the final touches on their bids, while others are still gathering intelligence in an effort to avoid direct competition. A few observations come to mind:

• Applicants increasingly rely on external tools and market intelligence services to assess whether others may be pursuing the same string.
• The first application round in 2012 attracted 1,930 new gTLD applications. My expectation is that the 2026 round will exceed that number, including a significant volume of .BRAND applications.
• Identity Digital, the largest new gTLD applicant, operates 270 new gTLDs and manages a portfolio of 470 TLDs. Following its funding announcement in December 2025, it would not be surprising to see the company expand its ambitions in the upcoming round.
• GoDaddy is another player that could increase its application activity.
• Unstoppable Domains kept announcing lots of strings too.
• SuperNova200 has publicly stated its intention to submit 200 applications.
• Internet.best announced a list of 10 strings.
• Anyone using AI to generate lists of promising strings should remember that they are unlikely to be the only ones taking that approach. If an idea seems obvious to an AI, it is probably obvious to many other applicants as well.
• As in the 2012 round, new entrants with substantial financial resources could emerge and compete aggressively for attractive strings.

The bottom line: AI can be a valuable tool for brainstorming and research, but it may not be the best companion when it comes to identifying truly unique and uncontested strings. In a crowded and increasingly sophisticated market, originality, market insight, and strategic thinking may prove far more valuable than AI-generated suggestions alone.

Round 2 and Blocked Names: Page 191 of the new gTLD Applicant Guidebook

I didn't pay attention to this in the first place because I saw no reason for a change about the .LOCAL new gTLD.

The .LOCAL new gTLD...

...is definitely one of the best strings to submit an application for anyone wanting to promote local content with domain names ending in ".local" (instead of ".com").

Can you submit an application for .LOCAL ?

I read it twice and compared both versions of the two applicant guidebook: version 2012 (page 60 & 61) and version 2026 (page 191 & 192) to understand why the .LOCAL new gTLD (and a few others) had disappeared from the list of Blocked Names from the 2026 Applicant Guidebook.

I noticed a few strings were missing form the list of Blocked Names and wondered: "How is it possible that I did not notice this?"

Reality came back knocking at my door when I read that paragraph about Special-Use Domain Names :

"Special-Use Domain Names: These are specific strings reserved by technical standards for purposes inconsistent with delegation, as explicitly noted on IANA’s Special-Use Domain Names Registry.245,246,247".

Special-Use Domain Names are specific strings reserved by technical standards for purposes inconsistent with delegation and when you click on the 245 hyperlink, it shows a few more strings that you cannot submit an application for. "Local" (and a few others) is in that list.

List of Blocked Names from 2012 Round 1:

List of Blocked Names from 2026 Round 2:

Don't submit an application for .LOCAL : this string is a blocked name. 

Vant Nexus is in Seville

We are in Seville, let's meet!

Contact me on LinkedIn.

Round 2 Projected Timeline based on 2,000 applications received

The ICANN Round 2 new gTLD Application Window just opened and I noticed an update on the Timeline. See below.

Official info from ICANN is available here.