A tiny Caribbean island with 15,000 residents just made $32 million in a single year.
Nope. No oil sale, or a diamond sale. They made millions with just two letters: .ai.
The .ai domain extension was introduced on February 16, 1995, by the IANA. It was assigned to Anguilla, a small British Overseas Territory located in the Caribbean.
For 27 years, nobody cared about .ai domains.
Tech founders ignored them.
Investors didn’t notice them.
Even Anguilla barely paid attention.
Then ChatGPT launched, and everything changed overnight.
Today, .ai domains cost 4-7x more than traditional .com domains, and premium names sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars on the secondary market.
In this blog, we’re covering everything you need to know about .ai domains: why are .ai domains so expensive, where to buy .ai domains, who controls the market, how they benefit your SEO, and whether investing in one is worth it for your startup or business.
Let’s get started.
Key Takeaways
- ai domains jumped 203% in one year, from 75K in July 2022 to 533K by October 2024.
- AI domains cost $80–$150+ per year, .ai domains fund Anguilla’s infrastructure while signaling quality.
- Anyone can register globally via GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, or Hostinger.
- Startups with .ai domains are seen as serious AI players, attracting VCs and customers.
- Google treats .ai like a global TLD, and gives your site worldwide visibility and AI authority.
What Are .AI Domains?
Every website address has two main parts:
- Second-Level Domain (SLD): The unique brand identifier, such as google.
- Top-Level Domain (TLD): The extension at the far right, such as .com, .org, or .net.
TLDs indicate a website’s purpose, category, or geographic origin.
Now, there are two types of TLDs:
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| Generic TLDs (gTLDs) | Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLDs) |
| Globally recognized extensions such as .com (commercial), .org (organization), and .net (network). Open to anyone, with no geographic or residency restrictions. Universally understood and often used for global targeting. | Two-letter codes assigned to specific countries or territories, based on the ISO 3166 standard. Examples: .uk (United Kingdom), .in (India), .au (Australia). Many ccTLDs are “closed,” and require proof of local residency or business registration. |
How .AI Became the “Artificial Intelligence” Extension
Originally, .ai domain was the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Anguilla, a small Caribbean island.
For years, it was just another country code extension, mostly irrelevant to anyone outside the region.
But today, .ai has outgrown its roots. It’s no longer just a country code, it’s a digital marker for artificial intelligence.
Now, it behaves more like a gTLD than a ccTLD. Startups, labs, and Fortune 500s use .ai domains to brand themselves as part of the AI revolution.
Why did this happen?
It’s because Anguilla allowed open registration.
Many country-code domains need proof of local presence, but anyone in the world can register a .ai domain.
The Rise of .AI Domains
Timeline of Growth: from niche to mainstream
After 2022, Generative AI exploded into the mainstream, .ai domain no longer remained a country code just for Anguilla.
All of the companies around the world who wanted to be a part of the AI boom started registering the .ai domains. Let’s see what the data tells:
Searches for “AI domain” alone grew by 203% in just one year leading into 2025.
.AI Domain Growth (2022–2025)
| Time Period | Registered Domains | Growth Metric | Context |
| July 2022 | 75,314 | Base Metric | Early stage |
| June 2023 | 248,609 | +160.77% YoY | Explosive growth begins |
| October 2024 | 533,068 | +146% in 18 months | High adoption phase |
| Mid-2025 (Projected) | 600,000+ | Estimated trajectory | Sustained momentum |
Well-Known Companies Using .AI Domains
Many leading AI companies use .ai domains, which strengthens the extension’s credibility.
Example:
- Perplexity AI (perplexity.ai): AI-powered search engine.
- Inflection AI (inflection.ai): large language model developer.
- Fixie.ai: platform for AI applications.
- CalmWave.ai: healthcare-focused AI company.
- Vevo Therapeutics (vevo.ai): biotech company using AI for drug discovery.
Why VCs and Founders Prefer .AI Branding
There are three big reasons founders and investors use .ai domains:
- Instant Relevance.
A .ai domain gives startups immediate relevance. It tells investors and customers the company works in artificial intelligence without further explanation.
- Investor Appeal.
Founders in deep learning, robotics, and machine learning often choose .ai because it highlights their technical focus right away.
- Commitment Signal.
Premium .ai names are expensive. Founders who buy them show they’re serious about long-term growth. That confidence makes it easier to raise capital and win trust.
Why Are .AI Domains So Expensive?
If you’ve ever searched for “why are .AI domains so expensive”, you’re not alone.
.ai domains cost much more than traditional extensions like .com or .net. They cost around $80 to $150+ per year, with equally high renewal fees.
There are three main reasons behind this:
- Anguilla’s pricing strategy.
The Government of Anguilla runs the .ai registry and keeps prices high because it’s a major source of national revenue.
- Scarcity of good names.
Unlike .com, which has hundreds of millions of registrations, .ai has only a few hundred thousand. Demand for short, simple, or keyword-rich domains (like ace.ai) far exceeds supply.
- Brand value.
A .ai domain signals credibility in the AI space. For startups, it’s positioning. Investors and customers see it as a marker of authority, which justifies the higher price.
Take a look at these notable sales on the secondary market:
| Domain | Sale Price | Context |
| you.ai | $700,000 | High brand premium, 2024 |
| ace.ai | $205,000 | Early 2025 sale, top ccTLD price |
| mini.ai | $100,000 | Short, brandable domain |
| twin.ai | $95,000 | Keyword-driven demand |
Where to Buy .AI Domains
If you’re asking “where to buy ai domains”, you’ll be pleased to know that anyone in the world can register a .ai domain. There are no residency or business requirements tied to Anguilla.
Several well-known registrars support .ai, including:
- Cloudflare Registrar
- Hostinger
- Namecheap
- GoDaddy
You can register, renew, and manage your domain through these platforms. Most also include helpful add-ons, such as free WHOIS privacy protection.
Who Sells .AI Domains?
Understanding who sells .ai domains is important for making an informed purchase.
The sale of .ai domains happens through a two-tiered system:
- The Registry: This is the top-level authority that manages the .ai domain. It sets the rules, controls the central database, and determines pricing. For .ai, the registry is run by the Government of Anguilla.
- The Registrar: These are accredited companies that can sell domains to the public. These include GoDaddy, Hostinger, and Cloudflare. Registrars are a bridge between the registry and the end-user, handling registration, renewal, and management of the domain.
SEO and Marketing Benefits of .AI Domains
.AI domains help SEO and marketing in many ways:
- Better Global Search Visibility: Google now treats .ai as a generic TLD, so websites can rank globally without being limited to Anguilla.
- Enhanced Security and Reliability: .ai domain has migrated to the Identity Digital platform in January 2025. This has improved security, uptime, and DDoS resistance.
- Credibility and Audience Targeting: Having an .ai domain means expertise in AI. This attracts a targeted, tech-savvy audience and boosts brand credibility.
- Memorability and Differentiation: A concise .ai address is easy to remember and sets a brand apart from competitors using longer, generic domains.
- Higher Click-Through Rates (CTR): Searchers looking for AI solutions are more likely to trust and click on a .ai domain.
- AI-Powered Optimization: Content on .ai domains must be optimized for both traditional and AI search results.
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Conclusion
The origin of .ai domains is a bit unexpected.
A small Caribbean island got two random letters in 1995, and thirty years later, those letters are worth millions because they accidentally match “artificial intelligence.”
Nobody planned this. Anguilla didn’t market it. It just… happened.
Today, .ai domains cost more than regular domains — around $80 to $150 per year versus $10–$15 for a .com.
Some premium names have sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Because of simple supply and demand economics.
So, is it worth it?
That depends on what you’re building.
If you’re in the AI space and want instant recognition, a .ai domain will work better for you than others.
But if you’re just starting out or budget-conscious, a good .com with strong branding works just fine too.
The choice is yours.
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