Axiom AO taxonomy v0.1

#A multidimensional proposal

The Axiom AO taxonomy v0.1 is an author-developed descriptive framework. It organizes questions about autonomous organizations without claiming consensus or certification. An organization receives a profile across independent axes; the framework does not rank every architecture on one ladder from primitive to advanced.

Independence here means that one choice does not determine another. Centralized ownership can coexist with several autonomous agents. Decentralized governance can coexist with a fixed workflow. Continuous service availability does not establish broad decision authority, and broad authority does not establish reliable performance. A change in ownership may leave the execution topology unchanged.

#Twelve descriptive axes

Each axis records an explicit design choice or an unknown. The examples below are illustrative values, not exhaustive categories. Some organizations require several values on one axis because different activities use different authority and operating arrangements.

#Describe first, evaluate separately

A profile should identify its scope and evidence date. A research organization may have broad authority to draft and narrow authority to publish; both values belong in the description. An observed deployment and a proposed design need different labels even when their profiles look identical.

Taxonomy describes arrangements; evaluation tests whether they work. Claims about reliability, cost, safety, or usefulness require experiments and operating evidence. Future revisions may split or combine axes when examples reveal ambiguity. Versioning preserves the meaning of earlier profiles and enables comparisons without silently changing category definitions.