Link Freedom Group Goes All In on New gTLDs - Company Filed Over 300 Submissions Before ICANN's New gTLD Application Window Closed Wednesday Night

For the first time in 14 years, ICANN has started the process of creating hundreds of new Top Level Domains. After opening in April, the window to submit applications to run newly created TLDs closed last night (August 12, 2026). While it will be a couple or more months before ICANN reveals exactly what strings were applied for and who applied to run them, we found out today who the most prolific player in this critical opening stage may have been. 

Link Freedom Group (LFG), a new internet infrastructure company built on a foundation laid by Nova Registry (operator of the .link TLD), announced a massive submission of more than 300 proposed TLDs, representing tens of millions of dollars in application fees. That would be the largest TLD submission on record, dating back to the first round of new gTLDs back in 2012. The Company also announced the appointment of Vaughn Liley, General Manager of Nova Registry, as CEO of Link Freedom Group.

Liley said, "The internet has changed dramatically since ICANN last opened applications for new TLDs in 2012. Digital identity has become fundamental to how people communicate, work and participate online, yet users still don’t truly own their place on the internet. From email addresses and social media profiles to personal websites, much of our online presence ultimately exists at the discretion of someone else. We believe the internet’s namespace should reflect how people use the web today, and our mission is to modernize how internet identity works.”

As part of its commitment to transparency LFG has published their full list of submissions now rather than wait for ICANN's Reveal Day (expected  by the end of October). Their portfolio, that can be viewed and downloaded at LFG.link, provides a comprehensive early look at the names and digital verticals the Company believes can help shape the next generation of the internet.

Vaughn Liley
CEO, Link Freedom Group

Here's a small sampling from their list:
AI & Tech: .llm, .agi, .quantum, .robot 
Commerce: .cart, .brand, .merch, .mall 
Culture: .lfg, .kek, .mvp, .truth, .omg, .boom 
Crypto & Web3: .block, .btc, .coin, .nft 
Lifestyle: .nil, .god, .pop, .zen 
Web Infrastructure & Utility: .portal, .core, .bit, .internet, .url

Liley noted, “The 2026 application window marked the first opportunity in more than a decade to expand one of the internet’s foundational layers—and to challenge the concentration of influence held by a relatively small number of companies that dominate internet infrastructure. Since the last application window, entirely new categories of internet users and businesses have emerged. Yet much of the domain namespace available today was designed for an earlier era of the internet.”

Link Freedom Group’s portfolio will now move into the next stages of ICANN’s evaluation process. After Reveal Day there will be a String Confirmation Day in November 2026, when applicants will confirm their final string selections. It is then expected to take another year or so for ICANN to finish the evaluation process and resolve any objections, with the first uncontested new gTLDs going live in late 2027 or early 2028.  

(Posted August 13, 2026)  

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