arXiv cs.AIMonday · May 25, 2026FREE

Redrawing the AI Map: A Theory of Accountability Boundaries in Agentic Ecosystems

A new theory paper on arXiv (2605.23179) develops a capability-level theory of accountability-boundary placement in agentic ecosystems. The authors introduce accountability assets—complementary assets that make AI-supported outputs legitimate, auditable, reviewable, and assignable to a responsible party. They argue that verification cost and responsibility transferability determine whether execution and accountability boundaries can move together. The theory identifies three boundary strategies: component, integrated, and dual-track. It also introduces rule debt, the governance burden that accrues when organizational decision rules migrate from formal information systems into ungoverned agentic execution environments. The paper integrates digital innovation and transaction cost economics to explain why AI-enabled capabilities may retain integrated accountability boundaries even when technical interfaces become modular. This work provides a framework for understanding governance challenges in agentic systems, with implications for organizational design and AI deployment.