What is Open Knowledge Format? Meaning, Structure, and v0.2 Spec

OKF meaning

In this guide, OKF means Open Knowledge Format. It is a draft approach for describing knowledge as readable Markdown files with structured YAML frontmatter at the top of each file.

The goal is not to replace documentation, databases, MCP, or RAG. The goal is to give humans and AI agents a cleaner way to inspect what a piece of knowledge is about before loading deeper context.

OKF definition

Open Knowledge Format is a file-based knowledge packaging format. A basic OKF document combines a YAML metadata block with a Markdown body so a concept can carry a type, title, description, resource link, tags, timestamp, and human-readable explanation.

A useful OKF bundle usually contains many small concept files plus an index file. Each concept should describe one durable item, such as a website page, API endpoint, data table, product rule, support playbook, or documentation topic.

OKF file example

The smallest useful OKF file starts with frontmatter, then continues as normal Markdown. Keep the concept narrow and point `resource` to the canonical page, asset, or stable identifier it describes.

---
type: Website Page
title: Open Knowledge Format Validator
description: A browser-only tool that checks basic OKF frontmatter fields.
resource: https://openknowledgeformat.online/okf-validator/
tags: [okf, validator, markdown]
timestamp: 2026-06-21T00:00:00Z
---

# Purpose

This page helps users test whether a Markdown document includes the fields expected by this guide.

Is OKF related to Google?

Public OKF draft materials are available from GoogleCloudPlatform sources, but this website is an unofficial learning site. It explains the draft, adds practical templates, and provides browser-only validation helpers. It is not a Google product page or official Google documentation.

OKF vs Open Knowledge Foundation

Open Knowledge Format and Open Knowledge Foundation can both be abbreviated as OKF, but they are not the same thing. On this website, OKF always refers to Open Knowledge Format unless a section explicitly says otherwise.

• Open Knowledge Format is the knowledge packaging format discussed on this site.
• Open Knowledge Foundation is a separate organization name and should not be confused with the format.
• Search snippets should make the difference clear because users may search for OKF meaning, OKF definition, or what is OKF.

What an OKF document contains

• `type`: the concept category. In the draft specification, this is the required field.
• `title`: a human-readable name for the concept.
• `description`: a short summary for previews, indexes, and search snippets.
• `resource`: a stable URL, URN, or asset identifier.
• `tags`: short labels for grouping related files.
• `timestamp`: an ISO 8601 datetime for the last meaningful update.

What changed in v0.2

This guide treats `generated`, `verified`, `status`, `stale_after`, and `sources` as optional review fields. They can record how a file was produced or reviewed, but they do not prove a claim is true, current, official, or suitable for every tool.

OKF v0.2 specification: trust and provenance

The OKF v0.2 specification expands frontmatter attributes to support trust boundaries, provenance tracking, freshness controls, and source attestations before context is indexed or consumed by AI agents.

• `verified: true`: indicates that a human owner reviewed the file content against the canonical source (`verified` tag).
• `status: active`: defines operational state (`active`, `pending`, `deprecated`, or `disputed`).
• `stale_after`: sets explicit review cadence to prevent stale context in AI agent memory (`verified`).
• `sources`: lists explicit origin URLs or URNs for provenance verification.

Visual overview

This video is visual background only. It is not used as proof of the OKF definition, version status, or any official claim.

Start from these OKF resources

• Read the OKF tutorial to build a first bundle.
• Browse OKF examples to see bundle patterns.
• Copy OKF templates for websites, API docs, SaaS, documentation, and data catalogs.
• Use the OKF validator to check frontmatter before publishing.
• Use the OKF folder validator before publishing a multi-file bundle.

Evidence and limits

This site is an unofficial guide. Public Google Cloud and GoogleCloudPlatform materials are useful references, but this site does not certify official OKF conformance or guarantee AI search visibility.

FAQ