type: "Stack layer"
title: "Observability and provenance"
description: "The evidence layer: traces, metrics, logs and an interoperable provenance graph."
tags: [stack, observability, provenance, evidence]
generated: { by: human:crpage, at: 2026-07-09T09:44:00Z }
status: stable

Role in the stack

The evidence layer. OpenTelemetry provides traces, metrics and logs; W3C PROV provides an interoperable model of the entities, activities and agents that produced an outcome. Together they imply a minimum evidence bundle for agentic execution: intent, retrieved-context version, tool-selection rationale, delegated authority, execution trace, result and provenance graph.

Why it is load-bearing

When an agent performs a lawful-but-undesired action, the question shifts from what did the model know? to which principal delegated authority, under which policy, using which contract version, with what recorded consent and audit trail?

Relates to: Provenance, Audit trail, UK public-sector implications.

Terms

Glossary terms used here: Audit trail, Consent, Provenance.