Semantic Commitment as an Architectural Authorization Problem in Long-Horizon Adaptive Systems

This work presents a foundational architectural analysis of semantic commitment in long-horizon adaptive systems operating under contextual uncertainty. It identifies premature semantic commitment as a distinct and previously under-addressed structural failure mode, occurring even when observations are correct, inference is locally admissible, and no adversarial manipulation is present. The core contribution of the work is the explicit separation between transient contextual interpretation and stabilized meaning, demonstrating that interpretive coherence or local optimality is insufficient to justify irreversible structural action. Meaning is defined not by instantaneous confidence, probability, or reward, but by persistence across an internal temporal measure distinct from wall-clock time. The work introduces an architectural framework in which: semantic interpretations may be generated freely and without restriction, semantic commitment is regulated as an authorization problem rather than an inference outcome, stabilization is governed by internal time rather than confidence thresholds, irreversible structural operations (such as regime transitions) are protected through commitment gating, long-horizon viability and identity continuity are preserved independently of performance optimization. The disclosure is intentionally non-operational. No algorithms, thresholds, formulas, or learning procedures are specified. Instead, the work defines architectural roles, invariants, and admissibility constraints, enabling multiple implementations while establishing clear conceptual prior art. This document is intended to serve as a foundational reference for subsequent research and development in adaptive system architecture, particularly for systems that must remain coherent, viable, and identity-preserving under uncertainty, delayed feedback, and irreversible structural cost.