The Global Workspace, the Free Energy Principle, and Astrocytes: A Paradigm Shift

Consciousness research has long been dominated by neuron-centric models, but emerging evidence suggests that astrocytes—metabolic and neuromodulatory gatekeepers—play a crucial role in regulating conscious access. This paper proposes a paradigm shift by integrating the Global Workspace Theory (GWT) and the Free Energy Principle (FEP) through the lens of astrocytic precision weighting and metabolic sustainment. Rather than treating consciousness as mere information integration, this framework argues that temporal coherence and metabolic constraints dictate which neural signals persist long enough to enter awareness. Astrocytes, by modulating prediction error weighting, oscillatory stability, and neuroenergetic support, serve as the missing link between hierarchical predictive processing and global ignition events. This astrocyte-centered model reframes consciousness as a metabolically constrained, time-structured process, providing a new foundation for understanding subjective experience, altered states, and potential artificial implementations of self-sustaining awareness.