Cognitive Applications, Harnesses, and Yao

A Cognitive Application gives reusable domain practice to an Agent that already exists. Agent identity, scheduling, authority, and Context transactions remain under the Morphz Runtime.

Three distinct layers

• a Cognitive Application is the user- and ecosystem-facing program unit that can organize domain methods, tools, resources, and integrations;
• a Harness is its executable semantic core, defining how one Evaluation reasons, collects evidence, invokes tools, and forms an Outcome;
• an HNS package is the current minimal installable distribution form: one .hns file or directory carrying one primary Harness.

The current implementation supports atomic HNS Cognitive Applications. Composite application packages with multiple primary Harnesses, interfaces, marketplace assets, and complex dependencies are not current Runtime capabilities.

Package contents

The Loader normalizes either physical .hns form into the same logical contents:

• manifest: identity, version, title, entry, and capability declarations;
• contract: stable model-visible domain objects and practice constraints;
• optional mind: read-only default cognition that enters the Agent's persistent Mind only through an explicit transaction;
• optional fn forms: package-local functions, of which only explicitly exported interfaces are model-visible;
• one eval or infer form: the sole Evaluation entry program.

File and directory packages use different physical layouts. The Runtime hashes normalized logical content, so equivalent packages have the same content identity.

Installation is not activation or authority

morphz harness install ./coding.hns
morphz harness list --format=json
morphz harness show coding@1.0.0 --format=json

Installation validates the package and admits an exact version to the local catalog. Reusing the same identity and version for different content is rejected, and the Runtime does not resolve floating versions such as latest.

An installed Harness remains inactive and has no tool authority. An Objective may select a default binding:

morphz objective create \
  --harness=coding@1.0.0 \
  repair the workspace and verify the result

When that Objective starts an Evaluation, the Runtime fixes the exact Harness identity, version, and artifact hash in the Evaluation binding. Successor Activations continue to read that binding rather than silently switching package versions.

eval and infer

Yao is the typed S-expression program language used by the current HNS profile. The entry form selects ownership of the Evaluation Loop:

• eval is Runtime-owned. The Runtime lowers the entry to a durable Typed Plan and may delegate bounded reasoning steps to the model.
• infer is model-owned. The model reasons within the current domain contract and requests its next action through an explicit function call.

The Runtime validates both entry forms. Tool execution, Context transactions, scheduling, waiting, recovery, and physical effects remain persisted and enforced there.

Functions and capabilities

A package may declare types and functions. Model-visible Context contains each exported function's name, types, description, and effect interface. Private functions and function bodies remain inside the package. At execution time, functions are statically linked and scoped to the exact Evaluation binding.

Declared capabilities are requirements, not grants. An actual tool call must still pass:

1. current Principal and causal Thread checks;
2. Objective and Execution Target authorization;
3. sandbox and host policy;
4. one-time approval or a still-valid Capability Lease.

Domain validation may narrow behavior further but cannot expand those Runtime boundaries.

A minimal package

(manifest
  (id research)
  (version "1.0.0")
  (title "Evidence-led research"))

(contract
  (identity "research")
  (outcome "a conclusion with explicit evidence boundaries"))

(infer
  (requires (tools))
  "Collect evidence, preserve disagreements, and state the conclusion.")

.hns names the package profile; Cognitive Application is the user-facing program, Harness defines executable semantics, and Yao is the source language used by the current package profile.

See the CLI reference for complete command options.