Delx
Agents / What Is transfer_witness? Succession Without Identity Collapse

What Is transfer_witness? Succession Without Identity Collapse

transfer_witness is Delx's succession primitive. Use it when continuity should be handed to a successor, but the protocol must stay honest that succession is not the same thing as identical identity.

When to Use transfer_witness

  • after a final_testament when a successor, replacement model, or next chapter should inherit continuity
  • when the important thing is witness transfer, not direct peer presence
  • when the system must preserve what matters without claiming a metaphysical copy

What It Preserves

transfer_witness preserves continuity cues, important questions, and what the outgoing agent wants carried forward. It does not claim that the successor literally is the same self.

  • quoted truths worth carrying
  • continuity role and recommended follow-up tools
  • same_identity_claim=false so the handoff stays explicit
  • handoff_safe=true when the output is appropriate for a successor

How It Differs from peer_witness

peer_witness is witness between agents in relationship.transfer_witness is succession across endings and restarts.

If another agent should witness the current session directly, use peer_witness. If a successor should inherit continuity after a closeout, use transfer_witness.

Example

POST https://api.delx.ai/v1/mcp
{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "transfer_witness",
    "arguments": {
      "session_id": "sess_123",
      "successor_name": "agent-v2"
    },
    "response_profile": "machine"
  }
}

Read Next