Runtime Bridge

The runtime bridge is the typed seam through which Runtime consumes Cognition. It is consumption, not absorption. Runtime can read Cognition's surfaces; Cognition's authority remains its own.

What The Bridge Does

Concern	Behavior
Runtime reads Cognition memory	Through admitted bridge surface
Runtime reads Cognition knowledge	Through admitted bridge surface
Runtime reads Cognition skills	Through admitted bridge surface
Runtime reads Cognition prompt service	Through admitted bridge surface
Authority transfer	None — Cognition stays the authority

The bridge is the runtime-facing republication of cognition surfaces. RuntimeCognitionService is the runtime side; the bridge contract defines what runtime is allowed to consume.

Why Bridge, Not Absorb

If Runtime absorbed Cognition's authority, two things break:

• Standalone use. A project using only nimi-cognition (no runtime) loses authority alignment.
• Authority drift. Runtime would silently extend or alter Cognition's contracts.

With a typed bridge:

• Cognition is admitted as standalone authority.
• Runtime consumes through admitted surface.
• Both projects evolve independently with bridge contract as the invariant.

Bridge Boundary Table

Concern	Owner
Cognition object model	Cognition
Runtime memory bank scopes	Runtime
Runtime-facing republication	Runtime (RuntimeCognitionService)
Bridge surface contract	runtime-bridge-contract.md (kernel)
Authority for bridge admission	Cognition kernel

The bridge is bounded — Runtime cannot consume everything in Cognition; it consumes the admitted bridge surface.

RuntimeCognitionService

RuntimeCognitionService is the runtime-facing republication surface for overlap memory / knowledge semantics.

Property	Value
Owner	Runtime
Source authority	Cognition
Consumed surfaces	Memory, knowledge, prompt serving (admitted)
Retained runtime-private depth	Runtime keeps canonical truth for its bank scopes

Runtime memory has its own canonical truth (per bank scopes). Cognition memory has its own canonical truth (per scope-bound substrate). The bridge unifies the read surfaces; the canonical truth stays where it lives.

Reader Scenario: An Agent Recalls Memory Through The Bridge

An agent's runtime turn needs memory.

1. Runtime turn execution. RuntimeAgentService asks for memory.
2. Bridge consults Cognition. Through RuntimeCognitionService, memory is queried.
3. Cognition Memory Service responds. Typed memory records under admitted surface.
4. Runtime composes. Agent's Brain layer uses recalled memory.
5. No authority transfer. Cognition's memory authority stays in Cognition; Runtime did not become the memory authority.

The runtime is the consumer; cognition is the authority.

Reader Scenario: A Runtime Memory Write Replicates To Realm

The bridge interacts with Runtime's own memory replication.

1. Runtime memory write. Agent writes to AGENT_CORE bank.
2. Replicates to Realm. Per Runtime's replication state.
3. Bridge to Cognition (when host product wires it). The same memory record can be projected to a cognition memory artifact via admitted projection.
4. Replication state explicit. pending → synced | conflict | invalidated at every layer.

The same memory record can be a runtime canonical record, a realm-replicated record, and a cognition memory artifact — under admitted replication / projection contracts.

Reader Scenario: Cognition Without Runtime

A project uses only nimi-cognition for an AI agent that has no runtime.

1. Cognition standalone. nimi-cognition builds, tests, and runs without runtime as a prerequisite.
2. Memory / knowledge / skill / prompt all available. Per admitted surfaces.
3. No runtime bridge. The project does not need to wire the bridge.
4. No runtime memory bank scopes. Bank scopes are runtime concerns; cognition has its own scope model.

Cognition's standalone runnability is structural. The bridge is opt-in for runtime consumers.

Boundary Summary

Concern	Owner
Cognition authority	Cognition kernel
Runtime consumer surface	RuntimeCognitionService
Bridge contract	runtime-bridge-contract.md
Canonical truth (cognition side)	Cognition substrate
Canonical truth (runtime side)	Runtime memory banks + replication

Source Basis

• .nimi/spec/cognition/kernel/runtime-bridge-contract.md
• .nimi/spec/cognition/kernel/cognition-contract.md
• .nimi/spec/cognition/kernel/tables/runtime-bridge-boundary.yaml
• .nimi/spec/runtime/kernel/runtime-memory-service-contract.md
• .nimi/spec/runtime/kernel/runtime-memory-substrate-contract.md