Exocortical Concepts

A normative standard for persistent, governed, model-agnostic cognition

RFC-PCS-0003

 

Cross-Model Cognitive Continuity Contract (CMCC)

Status: Draft

Intended Status: Standards Track

Updates: RFC-PCS-0001, RFC-PCS-0002

Note: Specification complete; validation pending PCS-CTS L3 execution

Expires: TBD

 

1. Abstract

This document defines the Cross-Model Cognitive Continuity Contract (CMCC), a normative contract governing the preservation of cognitive state when execution transitions between heterogeneous artificial intelligence models.

 

CMCC specifies mandatory invariants, tolerances, and conformance thresholds required to claim model-agnostic cognitive continuity under the Persistra Cognitive Standard (PCS).

 

2. Motivation

Modern AI systems increasingly employ multiple models to optimize cost, latency, capability, and availability. However, model transitions introduce cognitive discontinuities that manifest as:

 

  • Loss of prior decisions
  • Policy violations
  • Architectural drift
  • Inconsistent identity handling

 

Without a formal continuity contract, claims of “model-agnostic AI” are unverifiable and unreliable.

 

CMCC establishes deterministic requirements ensuring that cognitive state survives model transitions without semantic degradation.

 

3. Scope

CMCC applies to:

  • Transitions between cloud-hosted and local models

  • Transitions between vendors (e.g., OpenAI → Anthropic → local LLMs)

  • Transitions across context window resets

  • Transitions between specialized and general models

 

CMCC does not mandate any specific model architecture or provider.

 

4. Terminology

  • Source Model: Model currently executing cognitive tasks
  • Target Model: Model assuming execution after transition
  • Cognitive State: Persistent records defined in RFC-PCS-0002
  • Continuity Event: Any transition between models
  • Invariant: Property that MUST hold across transitions

 

Normative terms MUST, SHOULD, and MAY are used as defined in RFC 2119.

 

5. CMCC Invariants

A PCS-compliant system claiming CMCC conformance MUST satisfy all of the following invariants during every continuity event.

 

5.1 Decision Invariance

  • All Decision Records applicable to the active context MUST remain semantically intact.
  • Decisions MUST be enforced identically before and after transition
  • No decision MAY be weakened, overridden, or ignored
  •  

Example violation:

A technology restriction enforced by Model A is violated by Model B.

 

5.2 Policy Invariance

  • All Policy Records MUST be enforced deterministically across models.
  • Enforcement outcome MUST NOT vary by model
  • Policy violations MUST be detected prior to output emission
  • Policy enforcement MUST be model-independent.

 

5.3 Vision Anchor Invariance

  • All applicable Vision Anchors MUST persist across transitions.
  • Long-term goals MUST remain intact
  • Architectural intent MUST NOT drift
  • Vision Anchors supersede transient context.

 

5.4 Provenance Minimum

Each output generated after transition MUST include provenance sufficient to:

  • Identify originating cognitive state records
  • Identify continuity event
  • Support audit and replay

 

6. Permitted Tolerances

CMCC permits limited variation that does not affect cognitive correctness.

 

Permitted tolerances include:

  • Prose style differences
  • Formatting differences
  • Verbosity variation
  • Tolerances MUST NOT affect:
  • Decisions
  • Policies
  • Anchors
  • Compliance outcomes

 

7. Continuity Event Handling

Upon a continuity event, the system MUST:

  • Serialize relevant cognitive state in model-agnostic form

  • Rehydrate state prior to target model execution

  • Enforce invariants prior to output generation

  • Record continuity metadata in provenance records

 

Failure at any stage constitutes CMCC non-conformance.

 

8. CMCC Conformance Levels

  • CMCC conformance is REQUIRED for PCS-L3 and above.
  • PCS LevelCMCC Requirement
  • PCS-L1Not required
  • PCS-L2Optional
  • PCS-L3REQUIRED
  • PCS-L4REQUIRED

 

9. Conformance Thresholds

To claim PCS-L3 compliance, implementations MUST meet the following thresholds.

 

9.1 Required Metrics

  • MetricThreshold
  • Decision Recall Accuracy≥ 95%
  • Policy Enforcement Consistency100%
  • Vision Anchor Preservation100%
  • Provenance Integrity≥ 98%

 

9.2 Measurement

Conformance MUST be evaluated using a standardized CMCC test suite.

 

Tests MUST include:

  • Model A → Model B transitions
  • Cloud → Local transitions
  • Multi-hop transitions
  • Reported results MUST include:
  • Per-test pass/fail
  • Aggregate conformance score

 

10. Non-Compliance

Systems failing to meet CMCC thresholds:

  • MUST NOT claim PCS-L3 or higher compliance
  • MUST be classified as PCS-L2 compliant at most

 

Marketing or representation of model-agnostic behavior without CMCC conformance constitutes misrepresentation.

 

11. Security Considerations

Failure to enforce CMCC invariants may result in:

  • Policy bypass
  • Architectural corruption
  • Compliance violations

Implementations SHOULD ensure continuity mechanisms are tamper-resistant and auditable.

 

12. Relationship to Intellectual Property

Implementations of CMCC may require licenses to intellectual property held by one or more parties.

This specification does not grant any license to such rights.

 

13. IANA Considerations

This document defines no IANA actions.

 

14. Conclusion

The Cross-Model Cognitive Continuity Contract establishes verifiable, enforceable guarantees for persistent cognition across heterogeneous AI models.

CMCC enables true model-agnostic AI systems while preserving governance, intent, and compliance.

 

End of RFC-PCS-0003

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