Device Context Protocol: A Compact, Safety-First Architecture for LLM-Driven Control of Constrained Devices
arXiv:2605.26159v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: Large language models are increasingly used as orchestrators of external tools via the Model Context Protocol (MCP), but MCP is built for software services with megabytes of memory and does not descend to the microcontrollers that dominate the long tail of physical devices. Recent work (IoT-MCP) ports MCP to edge gateways at 74 KB peak memory; this still excludes the smallest commodity MCUs and, critically, does not address the safety problem of giving an unreliable caller (an LLM that may hallucinate or be prompt-injected) direct control of ph
The proliferation of LLMs and their increasing application to real-world control systems necessitate a robust and safety-conscious protocol for managing constrained devices, a gap that current solutions do not adequately fill.
This development addresses a critical safety and security bottleneck for integrating AI into the vast network of physical devices, enabling more sophisticated and reliable AI-driven automation.
The proposed 'Device Context Protocol' (DCP) aims to enable secure and efficient LLM control over microcontrollers, expanding the reach of AI agents beyond software services to the 'long tail' of physical devices.
- · IoT device manufacturers
- · Automation companies
- · AI developers
- · Industrial control systems
- · Developers of insecure IoT protocols
- · Systems relying on human-in-the-loop for simple device control
- · Hackers targeting insecure constrained devices
The DCP will enable LLMs to directly and safely control a much wider array of physical devices, from smart home appliances to industrial sensors.
This expanded control could lead to new classes of autonomous systems in critical infrastructure and pervasive computing, requiring new safety regulations and oversight.
The enhanced security and efficiency may accelerate general-purpose AI agent adoption in physical domains, potentially displacing human operators in various maintenance and operational roles.
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Read at arXiv cs.LG