Glossary

Use this page when an EmbrAIon term appears before you need the full engineering model.

In plain English

Most projects can start with knowledge + policy + validation. The rest of this vocabulary matters only when the repository needs more control.

Term	Meaning
Project contract	The repository-owned EmbrAIon configuration and knowledge that define how AI-assisted engineering should work for this project.
Core	Reusable EmbrAIon mechanisms: schemas, generic roles/skills, routing contracts, validation/review mechanics, security mechanics, and host projection behavior.
AI host	The AI client that owns the conversation and its native reasoning/tools, such as Codex, GitHub Copilot, or Claude Code.
Host projection	Generated host-native files that deliver the project contract to an AI host. A projection is derived output, not a second source of truth.
Knowledge	Project facts and source-of-truth documents registered in .embraion/knowledge.yaml.
Project Contract Slot	A built-in knowledge role such as architecture, source authority, compatibility, persistence, engineering workflow, or specification.
Policy	Project-owned rules for source classes, privacy, review, protected paths, and optional enforcement.
Canonical source/path	Content treated as authoritative project truth for its concern.
Protected source/path	Content that AI work should not mutate unless the project explicitly permits the required path/process.
Generated source/path	Derived output that should normally be regenerated from its owner rather than edited as canonical project truth.
External source/path	Content owned outside the project contract, such as vendored or upstream material.
Route class	A stable description of work/risk such as ordinary, substantial, or complex. It is not a permanent model tier.
host-default	Routing result that leaves actual model selection to the AI host's current default/automatic behavior.
Deployment	A reusable project-owned concrete model/provider choice. Think what can be selected.
Routing	Rules that decide when a route or role should select a deployment or explicit host option.
Execution binding	Project configuration describing how an approved deployment may be invoked through EmbrAIon's optional provider-neutral runtime.
Provider-neutral execution	The optional embraion execute path where EmbrAIon owns a bounded external/API attempt loop. Ordinary host-native conversations do not pass through it.
Validation profile	A named set of real project commands used to prove that a change works.
Evidence	Structured records produced by validation, review, execution, or enforcement so claims can be tied to actual checks.
Review	Project rules/evidence for independent or human assessment of a change.
Enforcement	Deterministic delivery/merge checks for protected paths, validation, and optionally review. Text guidance alone is not enforcement.
Runtime resolution	Resolving the exact EmbrAIon version pinned by a repository, including an isolated cached runtime when needed.

The four advanced words most people mix up

Concept	Question
Deployment	What concrete choice exists?
Routing	When should it be selected?
Execution binding	How may it be invoked safely?
Pricing	How is provider cost interpreted/refreshed?

For the precise model, see Engineering Model Deep Dive.