AnswerUp overview

What problem does AnswerUp solve?

AnswerUp is a provider-neutral reliability and integrity layer for consequential actions. It helps an autonomous or assisted agent, workflow, automation, API, application, or other system distinguish a proposed operation from what an authoritative system actually changed. Its governed-action lifecycle sits between the proposing system and the systems that own inventory, money, appointments, identity, or other important state.

Why it matters

A fluent model response or provider acknowledgment is not evidence that an action was authorized or completed. AnswerUp keeps proposal, permission, observation, and final effect separate so an application can fail closed instead of making a confident but unsupported claim.

What exists now

The current private preview includes Core, Runtime, Actions and local integration examples. AnswerUp adds a provider-neutral, governed execution lifecycle to your application while you retain control of your models, interfaces, providers and authoritative systems. Documentation is public. Selected archives are available through trusted private-preview handoffs; public registry distribution and hosted execution are not currently available.

Example: a lumber reservation

In a synthetic scenario, a procurement application submits a proposal to reserve 20 boards. The integrator supplies evidence and trusted context; the AnswerUp lifecycle checks grounding and authorization, records stable identities, and requires an independent read-back. Only supported effect truth permits a bounded application claim.

How it fits into an existing system

The host supplies bounded proposals, trusted context, identities, policy authority, provider access, and an independent verifier. The Core package carries the operation through grounding, authorization, protected execution, verification, reconciliation, and claim projection. The host remains responsible for credentials, provider and verifier I/O, authoritative systems, and how a supported claim is presented. This integration relationship keeps authority with the systems that own the facts while giving applications a consistent reliability boundary.

Where to continue

Read Core lifecycle for the nine stages and truth mappings. Then choose the component detail that matches your work, such as Grounding and candidates, Authorization, Provider and verifier responsibilities, or Safe claims. This documentation is pinned to 0.2.0-preview.1; package compatibility is governed separately by the package access record.