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T81 Architecture Overview

Status: Active
Last Verified (UTC): 2026-02-26
Maturity: Mixed (Frozen core, Experimental periphery)

Architecture File Style Guide

  • Terminology mapping: "TISC ISA" -> isa/; "VM Interpreter" -> vm/; "Axion Governance Engine" -> kernel/axion/; "CanonFS" -> fs/ + include/t81/canonfs/; "Experimental tiers" -> experimental/.
  • Link style: repo-relative markdown links to concrete files only.
  • Diagram conventions: GitHub-renderable Mermaid only.
  • Maturity labels: Frozen, Stable, Experimental, Stubbed.
  • Authority: /spec > docs/architecture/OVERVIEW.md > /docs > /book.

Purpose

T81 is a ternary operating system for AI. This document is the canonical architecture snapshot of its implemented components, layer boundaries, and bounded determinism claim scope.

Layer Cake

flowchart TD
    L[T81Lang Frontend/Stdlib]
    I[TISC ISA]
    V[T81VM Interpreter]
    A[Axion Policy Engine]
    C[CanonFS]
    X[Experimental: Cognitive Tiers + Hanoi Concepts]

    L --> I --> V --> A --> C
    X -. optional / non-DCP .-> V
    X -. optional / non-DCP .-> A
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Diagram source: diagrams/overview-layer-cake.mmd

Current State by Layer

Layer Primary code Primary spec Maturity Notes
Data types include/t81/types/ spec/t81-data-types.md Frozen Deterministic-core surface.
TISC ISA isa/ + VM decode/dispatch spec/tisc-spec.md Frozen Opcode semantics/freeze governed.
VM interpreter vm/ spec/t81vm-spec.md Stable DCP includes interpreter path, not JIT.
Axion governance kernel/axion/ spec/axion-kernel.md Stable (bounded) Policy verdicts integrated in VM step path.
CanonFS fs/ + include/t81/canonfs/ spec/supplemental/canonfs-spec.md Stable (bounded) Integrity controls implemented; claims remain bounded.
Experimental tiers/kernel concepts experimental/ spec/cognitive-tiers.md, spec/supplemental/hanoi-kernel-spec.md Experimental / Stubbed Not part of DCP guarantees.

Binary Host Execution Boundary

T81 is a ternary semantic architecture executed on binary hardware. This is an intentional design choice, not a compromise. The platform implements native ternary semantics through a binary substrate compatibility layer:

  • 2-Bit Packed Trits: Trits are packed using 2 bits per trit (0=N, 1=Z, 2=P), allowing 4 trits per byte, naturally aligning with binary storage.
  • SWAR Vectorization: Operations on these packed trits use SIMD Within A Register (SWAR) techniques, delivering extreme performance on modern x86 and ARM processors without sacrificing ternary correctness.

Key Invariants

  1. Determinism claims are bounded to verified surfaces in DETERMINISTIC_CORE_PROFILE.md and DETERMINISM_SURFACE_REGISTRY.md.
  2. VM execution is policy-aware: interpreter dispatch and trace paths call Axion verdict evaluation before protected effects.
  3. Fault behavior is explicit trap semantics, not undefined behavior (include/t81/vm/traps.hpp + VM dispatch checks).
  4. Dependency boundaries are governed by DEPENDENCY_FIREWALL.md.

Execution Summary

sequenceDiagram
    participant FE as Frontend
    participant ISA as TISC Program
    participant VM as Interpreter
    participant AX as Axion
    participant FS as CanonFS

    FE->>ISA: deterministic bytecode emit
    ISA->>VM: load_program()
    VM->>AX: eval syscall context (step/opcode)
    AX-->>VM: Allow/Warn/Deny + reason
    VM->>FS: guarded persistence/read paths (when invoked)
    VM-->>VM: trap or continue deterministically
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Diagram source: diagrams/governance-axion-sequence.mmd

Indeterminate

  • Full JIT/interpreter semantic equivalence status is not asserted here.
  • Universal cross-platform bit-identity for all floating-point transcendental behavior is not asserted here.

Evidence

Acceptance Criteria

  • Every non-trivial claim maps to at least one item in Evidence.
  • Implemented vs experimental surfaces are explicitly separated.
  • Diagrams render in GitHub Markdown (Mermaid).
  • Determinism statements are bounded to DCP/registry language.