INTENT BEFORE AI
A Manifesto for Deploying AI Without Losing Control
AI is not dangerous because it’s “intelligent”.
AI is dangerous because it’s non-deterministic.
Non-determinism is a feature for creativity and discovery,
but a liability for security, compliance, and governance.
If AI is allowed to act without boundaries,
you don’t have innovation » you have unbounded risk.
The Core Principle
AI must be tethered to the deterministic bedrock of Intention.
AI explores possibilities
Intention defines what is allowed to happen
Determinism enforces the boundary between the two
This is not about trusting AI.
It’s about deciding, in advance, what outcomes are even admissible.
What We Mean by Intention
Intention is not:
A policy document
A guideline
A best practice
A prompt
Intention is:
Explicit
Versioned
Forward-looking
Enforceable
Immutable once active
Intention declares:
Purpose — why this system exists
Authority — what it may and may not do
Scope — what data, repos, and actions are in play
Assumptions — what must be true or execution halts
Time bounds — when authority starts, changes, or expires
If intention is not declared,
AI has already exceeded its authority.
The Role of AI (Strictly Limited)
AI is a powerful coprocessor, not a decision-maker.
AI may:
Observe
Analyze
Explain
Suggest
Draft non-authoritative outputs
AI may never:
Decide
Execute
Expand its own authority
Bypass a denial
Fill in missing assumptions
Act optimistically under uncertainty
AI does not get the benefit of the doubt.
Uncertainty results in restraint.
Determinism at the Boundary
Every action, output, or emission must pass a deterministic gate:
Intention ⊗ Constraints ⊗ Assumptions → Outcome
Outcomes are finite and boring — by design:
ALLOW
WITHHOLD
DENY
HALT
If a system cannot deterministically explain why something happened —
or why it didn’t — it is not governed.
Why This Matters
This approach:
Scales AI without scaling liability
Enables speed without sacrificing control
Makes AI deployable in regulated, adversarial, and high-value environments
Produces audit-grade evidence instead of post-incident narratives
Most systems try to train AI to behave.
We do something harder and more reliable:
We decide what behavior is allowed to exist at all.
The Bottom Line
AI is the engine.
Intention is the guardrail.
Determinism is the contract.
Without all three,
you don’t have a system —
you have an eventual incident.