Definition · foundations
approval gate
approval gate is a point where an agent must stop and get consent before it takes a high-risk step. You can spot approval gate in practice when the record shows what the system observes, what choice it makes, and what changes next, without asking the reader to guess or trust a slogan.
157 definitions656 sourced recordsNamed source: ACL Anthology
Why does approval gate matter?
A gate keeps a high-risk choice with the person or system named to make it. For approval gate, start with three checks: What can the system observe? What choice can it make? What changes after it acts? The answers should point to visible evidence, not a promise.
What does approval gate look like?
An agent drafts a bank transfer but waits for the owner to confirm the sum and recipient. This example makes approval gate visible by naming the actor, the action, and the result in practice. It is an illustration for readers, not a claim that every product behaves this way.
What is approval gate easy to confuse with?
An approval gate needs consent before work goes on. An escalation sends a problem to more authority or skill. The closest entries here are AI agent, artificial intelligence (AI), action space. Compare their definitions with approval gate before using the names as if they mean the same thing.
How certain is this definition?
This definition is provisional. ACL Anthology supports the version you see today, but a better or more direct source may change it. Open the cited page and check its date before you use this entry to choose a product, write a policy, set a safety control, or design a system.
Who introduced the term approval gate?
We have not verified who first introduced approval gate. The source supports a useful definition, but it may not be the earliest use. Until a dated primary record settles the question, we leave the origin open. A popular article or product page is not enough to name the person who coined a term.
What should you understand before approval gate?
Read artificial intelligence (AI) first when approval gate depends on a more basic idea or mechanism. The link gives you a useful route through the glossary. It does not mean every author teaches the subject in this order, so follow the source when the sequence matters.
What should this term help you answer?
Use approval gate to ask what an agent can observe, decide, change, remember, or hand off. The questions below turn the definition into a practical check. They are prompts for your own work, not claims made by the source, so change them to fit the system you are examining.
- What can the system observe?
- What choice can it make?
- What changes after it acts?
Which source supports this definition of approval gate?
ACL Anthology supports this working definition of approval gate. We checked the link on 2026-07-12. Open the original record for its context, methods, limits, and publication details. The short explanation here is a guide to approval gate; the linked source remains the evidence to inspect when the wording or boundary matters.
source foundapproval gateChecked 2026-07-12→