Performance evaluation of open-source multiagent platforms

Nowadays, most multiagent platforms are internally designed as middleware and are usually implemented in Java and run on top of an operating system. This kind of design maximizes portability and reduces the development cost; however, it may lead to low performance and scalability. In this context, our research has the long-term goal of integrating into the operating system some key services which are currently supported by middleware platforms. The first step in achieving this goal is to study some well-known, open-source platforms in order to understand to what extent the internal design of a platform influences its performance.