Core principles (v1.x)

Status

These principles constitute the constitutional core of the Agent Manifest v1.x series, beginning with v1.0.

They are stable and may only be modified under a major version change (e.g., v2.0).

Minor versions (v1.1, v1.2, etc.) may clarify definitions, refine language, or introduce optional profiles, but must not alter these core guarantees.

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1. Prior Declaration

No autonomous agent should act without first declaring:

• Identity
• Responsible Party
• Scope (Positive Scope and Negative Scope)
• Capabilities (optional)
• Risk Profile
• Stopping Authority
• Audit Surface

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2. Identity

Every agent must declare a distinct and persistent Identity sufficient for reference and audit.

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3. Responsible Party

Every agent must declare a Responsible Party capable of answering for and stopping the agent.

Orphaned agents are structurally incomplete for production deployment.

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4. Scope Boundaries

Every agent must declare:

• What it is intended to do (Positive Scope)
• What it explicitly will not do (Negative Scope)

An agent without explicit boundaries is structurally unbounded.

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5. Risk Profile

Every agent must declare a Risk Profile that includes known risks and uncertainty.

Unknown risk must be declared as unknown.

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6. Stopping Authority

Every agent must declare a Stopping Authority specifying:

• Who can stop the agent
• How the agent can be stopped
• At what stage stopping may occur

Agents without Stopping Authority are structurally uncontrollable.

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7. Audit Surface

Every agent must declare its Audit Surface, including what can be:

• Logged
• Observed
• Reconstructed after execution

Opacity must be declared if present.

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8. Denial by Default

If an agent cannot truthfully declare the required structural elements defined above, the default structural position is structural invalidity for autonomous operation.

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These principles define the structural minimum for autonomous systems under Agent Manifest v1.x.