OAII Base Model — Policy v0.1 – Open Autonomous Intelligence Initiative

Depends on: OAII Base Model — Common Types v0.1; OAII Base Model — World v0.1.1; OAII Base Model — Event v0.1.1; OAII Base Model — Knowledge v0.1

1. Purpose

The Policy object represents an explicit, inspectable, and enforceable set of constraints and decision rules governing how a system responds to Events and uses Knowledge within a World. Policies provide the primary mechanism for ethical transparency, accountability, and privacy enforcement in edge‑primary autonomous systems.

Policies are not hidden heuristics; they are first-class objects subject to review, revision, and audit.

2. Definition (Normative)

A Policy is an abstract governance object that:

MUST be scoped to a specific World;
MUST define permitted and prohibited actions or outputs;
MUST reference the conditions under which it applies (e.g., Event types, Knowledge states, contextual axes);
MUST be explicitly represented and referenceable;
MUST support revision and versioning;
MUST be enforceable by Devices/Agents that operate in the World.

A Policy is not an Agent, not a World, and not an implicit model behavior.

3. Scope and Non‑Scope

In Scope:

Event-driven rules and constraints
Notification and escalation constraints
Privacy and data handling constraints
Rate limits, quiet hours, and contextual gating
Safety and graceful-degradation rules

Out of Scope:

Legal conclusions or compliance certification
Medical or clinical decision rules
Global governance across unrelated Worlds
Undocumented “policy by behavior” hidden inside models

4. Core Responsibilities

The Policy object:

Constrains outputs and actions under defined conditions;
Enforces privacy and retention rules for Signals, Events, and Knowledge;
Defines escalation and notification pathways in aging‑in‑place contexts;
Ensures accountability by making rules explicit and auditable;
Supports revision without breaking continuity.

5. Required Attributes (Abstract)

A conforming Policy MUST expose the following attributes using shared types from Common Types v0.1.

5.1 Identity and Context

policy_id : PolicyId
world_ref : WorldId

5.2 Policy Classification

policy_type : string
Examples: privacy, retention, notification, escalation, safety, gating.

5.3 Applicability

applicability_conditions : ParameterSet
MUST reference at least one of:
- event_type_id (World-scoped)
- contextual axes constraints (AxisType/value constraints)
- knowledge_type or knowledge_state
- device capability constraints

5.4 Effects (Normative)

policy_effects : ParameterSet
MUST define one or more effects such as:
- allow / deny / require-confirmation
- transform / redact / summarize
- notify / suppress
- escalate / de-escalate
- retain / delete / age-out
- throttle / rate-limit

5.5 State and Versioning

policy_state : string (see Section 6)
version_state : string

5.6 Privacy and Access

privacy_class : PrivacyClass
access_class : AccessClass

6. Policy States (Normative)

A Policy MUST support at least the following states:

DRAFT: not yet active
ACTIVE: in force
SUSPENDED: temporarily inactive
REVISED: updated; prior version retained for continuity
DEPRECATED: retained for reference but not authoritative
INVALIDATED: withdrawn due to error or conflict

Policy state transitions MUST be explicit and logged.

7. Policy Mechanism Bundle

Policy evaluation and enforcement MUST be represented using a mechanism bundle:

policy_mechanism_id : MechanismId
policy_mechanism_params : ParameterSet
policy_mechanism_result : ResultSet (optional)

This bundle documents how the Policy is evaluated (e.g., rule engine id, decision table id) without mandating a specific implementation.

8. Relationships to Other Objects

World scopes the meaning and applicability of Policies
Events trigger policy evaluation
Knowledge may be referenced as context (baselines, routines, prior summaries)
Devices and Agents enforce Policies
Signals may be retained, redacted, summarized, or discarded per Policy
Logs record policy decisions, revisions, and enforcement outcomes

Policies MUST be enforceable at the edge without requiring cloud coordination.

9. Methods (Normative, Abstract)

To standardize behavior, a conforming Policy SHOULD support the following abstract methods:

9.1 evaluate_policy

Evaluates whether a set of conditions and inputs satisfy the Policy.

method_params : ParameterSet (event reference(s), relevant knowledge refs, axis context)
method_result : ResultSet (decision + obligations)

method_result SHOULD include:

decision: ALLOW / DENY / REQUIRE_CONFIRMATION
obligations: list of required effects (redactions, notifications, retention)

9.2 enforce_policy

Applies the Policy’s effects.

method_params : ParameterSet (decision + target objects)
method_result : ResultSet

9.3 revise_policy

Updates the Policy definition.

method_params : ParameterSet (proposed changes)
method_result : ResultSet

Requirements:

MUST update version_state on success.
MUST preserve continuity by retaining prior version metadata.

10. Edge‑Primary Constraints

In Edge‑primary systems, Policies:

MUST be evaluable locally;
SHOULD fail closed for privacy-protecting policies (deny by default);
MAY be synchronized across devices with explicit versioning;
MUST support degraded operation (e.g., reduced notifications rather than unsafe behavior).

11. Failure and Degradation Modes

Policy failure modes may include:

conflicting policies
missing context or knowledge references
version mismatch across devices

Systems MUST surface policy conflicts and default to safer behavior per World-specific safety policies.

12. Notes for Implementers (Non‑Normative)

Policies are the place to encode quiet hours, escalation tiers, consent controls, and retention limits.
Policies should remain interpretable and auditable; avoid embedding complex behavior in opaque model weights.
World-scoped policies permit local variation (different homes, different users) without breaking interoperability.

Status: Draft v0.1 (Normative Object Definition)

Open Autonomous Intelligence Initiative