Towards a Unified Framework for Quantum Spacetime: A Synthesis of Asymptotic Safety and Causal Dynamical Triangulations

We propose and explore a candidate unified framework for quantum gravity built on the central postulatethat the non-Gaussian fixed point of the continuum Asymptotic Safety program is physically equivalentto the second-order phase transition in discrete Causal Dynamical Triangulations. This synthesis offers anon-perturbative model of quantum spacetime from which a potential solution to the "Problem of Time"and a series of falsifiable cosmological and particle physics predictions arise. Within this framework,a standard, time-dependent quantum evolution is generated constructively from the microscopic, causalstructure of spacetime, from which a standard Schrödinger equation emerges.The unified model predicts spacetime emerges from a two-dimensional fractal state at the Planckscale, offering a mechanism to resolve cosmological and black hole singularities. After demonstratingthat a direct identification of the fixed-point epoch with inflation is ruled out by observation, the framework provides a mechanism for a "graceful entry" into a subsequent Starobinsky-like inflationary phaseconsistent with CMB data. It also predicts stable, Planck-mass black hole remnants as a viable dark matter candidate. Furthermore, a dynamical mechanism tied to cosmic expansion is included that may haltthe renormalization group flow of the cosmological constant, potentially explaining the observed scale ofdark energy. The requirement of a consistent gravity-matter system also places constraints on StandardModel parameters, leading to predictions for the Higgs and top quark masses that are in agreement withexperimental values.