Governed Context Architecture: A Filesystem Method for Multi-User AI Operation in Business

Recent work has shown folder structure and plain-text files can replace framework-level orchestration for single-operator AI workflows. However, the approach works for individuals but stops when it hits the needs of day-to-day business activities and needs, such as several people, potentially in several locations, editing shared knowledge at the same time without a shared notion of what is current, approved or permitted. This paper presents the Foundation Method, a governed context architecture that adds a fourth tier to tiered context loading: stable identifiers, declared authority, approval rules, a write-ahead journal and a mount table over existing stores. Each element is derived from established file-system and software-engineering practice. Together the four tiers let an AI enter a business and know what the business has approved, where to find it and what it may do with it. The paper sets out the method, the reasoning behind each element, the class of work it suits and the evaluation planned for the first deployments.