Visibility vs Operability

Visibility means an agent can discover an operation exists. Operability means an agent can invoke it.

An operation can be:

• Visible and operable — Discoverable and executable
• Visible but not operable — Discoverable but gated (e.g., requires approval)
• Not visible — Hidden from the agent entirely

This distinction prevents agents from assuming that discovery implies permission.

Declaring Operability

<button
  axag-intent="user.delete"
  axag-entity="user"
  axag-action-type="delete"
  axag-visible="true"
  axag-operable="false"
  axag-operability-reason="Requires admin approval"
  axag-approval-required="true"
  axag-approval-roles='["admin"]'
>
  Delete User
</button>

This tells the agent: you can see this operation exists, but you cannot execute it without admin approval.

Next Steps

• Determinism and Trust
• Safety Boundaries