Objective: This work proposes a unifying framework in which classical spacetime, general relativity, and quantum field theory emerge from a fundamental, time-independent quantum information structure—a holographic tensor network in its ground state. Methods: We introduce a self-referential, non-local operator M that selects a subsystem and breaks the global Hamiltonian constraint. This spontaneous symmetry breaking implements the Page-Wootters mechanism, generating an internal time parameter as a measure of entanglement reorganization. The Ryu-Takayanagi formula is then used to render the entanglement structure of the network into a low-dimensional spatial geometry, with Einstein's field equations arising as thermodynamic equilibrium conditions. Results: The framework yields a unified description of time's arrow, gravity, particle physics as topological defects, cosmic inflation, dark energy, and black hole information. It also predicts three testable effects: modified gravitational wave dispersion at the Planck scale, violation of the equivalence principle at ultra-low accelerations, and non-Gaussian B-mode polarization in the CMB. Conclusions: The theory provides a mathematically rigorous pathway from "It from Qubit" to the observable universe, connecting deep principles of quantum information to everyday experience. Experimental confirmation of any of its predictions would constitute the discovery of the fundamental architecture of our universe.
Xiang et al. (Mon,) studied this question.