Playable theory · Self-Improving Agents, chapters 3–4
The story at the heart of Self-Improving Agents (Micheal Lanham, Manning): a machine wants to improve itself, every new version must pass a gate before it ships — and you are the gate. The only question that matters: on what grounds do you say yes?
Every number in Act 2 comes from the revenue task in Self-Improving Agents (ch. 3) — the $508 leaderboard a vague instruction card produces, the $358 truth a canonical pipeline computes, and the six rules hiding in one manager's question. No model calls; every beat is authored and deterministic.