A0 through A3. Four levels of agent authority, from draft-only to kernel-editing.
Autonomy classes are the axis Arkeus uses to grade how much authority an agent has over a given action. There are four levels, and every verb in the system maps to exactly one.
A0 is draft only. The agent can prepare, but never send, post, or act. This is the default for money over $500, career offers, and family commitments. The cost of a wrong action at A0 is high enough that the gate stays fully closed — a human is always in the loop.
A1 is prepare and show diff. The agent produces the exact action it would take and shows Ryan the diff before committing. This is the class for career communications, financial tasks, and outbound messages to named external people. Ryan sees exactly what would happen, then approves or edits.
A2 is act and log. The agent executes immediately and writes the outcome to its decision log. This is the class for system restarts, memory edits, email labeling, and reminder creation. Reversible, low-stakes, clearly scoped. The log exists so Ryan can audit without having been in the loop.
A3 is propose kernel changes. The highest class, reserved for edits to identity, cognition_os, or corrections. A3 requires council deliberation — multiple frame agents arguing from different priors — before Ryan merges. This is where the system becomes self-modifying, and the ceremony is the point.
Promotion between classes is earned, not granted. Three good verdicts on the same action type promote the verb one level. One bad verdict demotes it one level and writes a correction. The system learns which actions it can be trusted with, and the log is the record of what it has actually earned.