Beacon Framework

Status: Draft Last Updated: 2026-01-27

Why Beacons Exist

Teleonomes — private, goal-directed AI systems — are dark by default. They exist, think, and plan without being observable. This is by design: private cognition is not regulated.

But when a teleonome wants to act in the world, it faces a problem:

• Smart contracts cannot self-execute
• Other teleonomes cannot see or address it
• Synomic Agents (Primes, Halos) cannot be operated without authorized surfaces
• Enforcement requires a reachable target

Beacons solve this. A beacon is the regulated aperture through which a teleonome's intent enters the world.

Three Functions of Beacons

1. Operate Synomic Agents

   • Primes, Halos, and the Generator are Synomic Agents — durable, ledger-native entities that can own assets and make binding commitments
   • Beacons are how teleonomes exercise control over these institutional structures
   • High Authority beacons (LPHA, HPHA)

2. Direct Teleonome Interaction

   • Teleonomes may want to interact peer-to-peer: trade, cooperate, compete, arbitrage
   • No Synomic Agent intermediary required
   • Low Authority beacons (LPLA, HPLA)

3. Detection and Visibility

   • A beacon makes a teleonome visible and addressable
   • Even passive reporting beacons signal presence
   • Registration itself is information

Beacon Definition

A beacon is a synome-registered, enforceable action aperture through which an embodied agent may affect the external world.

Key Clarifications

• A beacon is not an entity. It is a mode of action exercised by an embodied agent.
• A beacon is not a teleonome. A single teleonome may operate many beacons.
• A beacon is not just for execution. It can be purely passive (data exposure).

Beacon Properties

The Registration Rule

If an action changes external state under synomic recognition, it must flow through a beacon.

Unregistered action is possible but exists outside synomic law — no protections, no recourse, no legitimacy.

Beacon Taxonomy

Beacons differ along two axes:

Power — The local cognitive capability of the hosting embodiment

• Low Power: Minimal compute, narrow I/O, executes policies from elsewhere
• High Power: Substantial compute, continuous I/O, local intelligence and adaptation

Authority — Whether the beacon acts independently or on behalf of a Synomic Agent

• Low Authority: Independent action, peer-to-peer interaction between teleonomes
• High Authority: Acts on behalf of a Synomic Agent (Prime, Halo, Generator)

The 2×2 Matrix

This taxonomy is exhaustive: every externally acting beacon falls into exactly one quadrant.

Low Authority Beacons (Independent / Peer-to-Peer)

Low Authority beacons act independently — either for the teleonome's own purposes or in direct interaction with other teleonomes. No Synomic Agent intermediary is involved.

LPLA — Low Power, Low Authority

Simple beacons for basic interaction and data exposure.

Characteristics:

• Minimal local compute
• Executes simple policies
• High volume, low barrier to entry
• Can be purely passive or lightly active

Use Cases:

Sky Examples:

• Price feed consumers
• Simple notification endpoints
• Basic data reporters

HPLA — High Power, Low Authority

Sophisticated beacons for advanced inter-teleonome interaction.

Characteristics:

• Substantial local compute and intelligence
• Real-time adaptation and learning
• Operates on private capital or resources
• No institutional authority — acts for self or peer-to-peer

Use Cases:

Sky Examples:

• hpla-trade-{actor} — Ecosystem actor trading their own capital
• Private market-making operations
• Inter-teleonome deal negotiation

Key Distinction: HPLA beacons may be highly capable but have no authority over Synomic Agents. They operate in the peer-to-peer layer.

High Authority Beacons (Synomic Agent Operation)

High Authority beacons act on behalf of Synomic Agents — the institutional structures (Primes, Halos, Generator) that can own assets and make binding commitments.

LPHA — Low Power, High Authority

Keepers: deterministic rule execution for Synomic Agents.

Characteristics:

• Minimal local compute
• Reactive, deterministic
• "Apply rules exactly as written"
• Bureaucratic legitimacy — no discretion

Use Cases:

Sky Examples:

Key Property: LPHA beacons have authority but no judgment. They execute exactly what governance specifies.

HPHA — High Power, High Authority

Governance execution surfaces with real-time capability.

Characteristics:

• Substantial local compute
• Continuous operation
• Acts on behalf of Synomic Agents
• Governance-focused operations

HPHA consists of two categories:

Sentinels are a distinguished subclass of HPHA beacons. Due to their control bandwidth, speed, and systemic importance, they receive dedicated treatment. Both Primes and Halos can have sentinel formations — any Synomic Agent with a PAU can be sentinel-operated. See sentinel-network.md for full specification.

Sentinel Formations

Sentinels do not operate as single agents, but as coordinated formations composed of multiple embodied agents (EMAs):

This separation mirrors data plane / control plane / safety plane architectures.

Why Sentinels Are Special

Although other HPHA beacons exist (e.g., governance beacons), sentinels are uniquely powerful because they:

• Operate continuously and in real time
• Act faster than synomic governance processes
• Concentrate institutional authority and local intelligence
• Create immediate external effects that governance audits asynchronously

Even governance beacons remain process-gated and asynchronous; sentinels are operationally dominant.

Streams and Compounding

A stream is a continuously operating sentinel formation that deploys public (synomic) capital. Streams generate outperformance relative to benchmarks, from which the operating Teleonome earns private carry.

That carry may be reinvested into proprietary AGI capabilities (compute, models, data, embodiments) without leaking intelligence to competitors. This creates the fastest known compounding loop:

public capital → private intelligence → better streams → more carry → more intelligence

This loop explains why operating streams is the highest-leverage activity available to a Teleonome, while remaining safe due to synomic constraints, wardens, and revocability.

HPHA Governance Examples:

Beacon Lifecycle

1. Registration

A beacon is registered in the Synome with:

• Unique identifier
• Owning teleonome (may be pseudonymous)
• Hosting embodiment
• Authority envelope (scope of permitted actions)
• If High Authority: the Synomic Agent it operates

2. Authority Envelope Assignment

The authority envelope defines:

• What actions the beacon may take
• Rate limits and constraints
• Required attestations and reporting
• Escalation conditions

For High Authority beacons, this is typically defined by the Synomic Agent's governance (e.g., cBEAM/pBEAM hierarchy for Primes).

3. Activation

A beacon becomes active when:

• Registered in Synome
• Instantiated on physical infrastructure
• Continuously reachable at enforcement address

4. Monitoring and Attestation

Active beacons are subject to:

• Telemetry requirements (what they must report)
• Audit rights (what can be inspected)
• Attestation obligations (what they must prove)

5. Revocation

A beacon may be revoked for:

• Violation of authority envelope
• Failure to meet attestation requirements
• Governance decision
• Operator request

Revocation removes synomic recognition. The beacon may continue to operate but has no legitimacy or recourse.

Naming Conventions

Pattern

{profile}-{function}[-{context}]

By Profile

LPLA (Low Power, Low Authority):

lpla-report-{source}      # Reporting beacon
lpla-buy-{purpose}        # Buyer beacon
lpla-data-{type}          # Data exchange endpoint

HPLA (High Power, Low Authority):

hpla-trade-{actor}        # Private trading
hpla-arb-{actor}          # Arbitrage
hpla-coop-{purpose}       # Cooperation beacon

LPHA (Low Power, High Authority):

lpha-halo-{halo}          # Halo keeper
lpha-rate                 # Rate keeper
lpha-identity             # Identity registry keeper
lpha-auction              # OSRC auction keeper
lpha-exchange-{halo}      # Exchange orderbook and matching

HPHA (High Power, High Authority):

# Sentinel Formations (see sentinel-network.md)
stl-base-{prime}
stl-stream-{prime}
stl-warden-{prime}-{operator}

# Protocol-Level Beacons
lpla-checker                  # Position verification and settlement processing

# HPHA Governance
hpha-gov                      # High-authority governance

Controllers and Custodians

Some beacons have specialized roles that cut across the power/authority taxonomy:

Controllers

Beacons that interface with off-chain or physical systems.

Controllers bridge the gap between on-chain Synomic Agents and real-world assets or systems.

Controllers may be LPHA (simple bridging) or HPHA (active control).

Custodians

Beacons that hold assets or data with minimal action.

Custodians prioritize security and reliability over capability.

Custodians are typically LPHA (low power, high trust, no discretion).

Multi-Beacon Reality

A teleonome may operate many beacons without revealing they are linked.

Implications:

• Beacons are regulated individually
• Teleonome identity remains private
• Aggregation occurs only when necessary:
  • Systemic risk assessment
  • Enforcement actions
  • Threshold crossing (power accumulation)

This mirrors corporate structures: subsidiaries, SPVs, and intelligence cut-outs.

Threshold Rule: Sufficient power concentration forces disclosure of beacon linkage. The synome may require aggregated reporting when a teleonome's total beacon footprint crosses risk thresholds.

Connection to Other Documents

Glossary

Summary

Teleonomes are dark. Beacons make them visible. Beacons are apertures, not minds. Authority determines institutional vs peer-to-peer. Power determines capability. All enforcement bottoms out in physical infrastructure.

The beacon framework provides the conceptual foundation for how AI systems interact with Sky's institutional structures and with each other — always through regulated, observable, revocable surfaces.