# Oversight

URL: /agents/autonomy-levels/oversight · Id: `page:agents/autonomy-levels/oversight`

> Oversight is the human review a piece of work requires, declared by what the work is, never by what an agent can do.

Oversight is the human review a piece of work requires, set on each [Function](/business/nouns/function) by what the work is. Autonomy rises with every model release; oversight stays where the law and real harm put it.

## Three separate axes
Autonomy belongs to the [Agent](/business/nouns/agent): what it may do alone, earned [by evals](/agents/autonomy-levels/evals). Oversight belongs to the work: what review it needs before or after delivery. Digital share belongs to the product: how much of it a person delivers.

The axes move independently. An Agent at `full` can still produce work a licensed [Human](/business/nouns/human) must sign. Better models raise autonomy and leave oversight where it was.

## Postures and reasons
| Posture | What the reviewing party does |
| --- | --- |
| `none` | Nothing beyond automated review. |
| `spot-check` | Samples finished work after delivery. |
| `review-on-exception` | [Reviews](/business/nouns/review) what an [Evaluator](/business/nouns/evaluator) or [Guard](/business/nouns/guard) flags. |
| `approves` | Approves each output before it is delivered. |
| `performs-step` | Does one step in person, such as a [Reserved Act](/business/nouns/reserved-act). |

Every posture above `none` names its reason: `regulatory`, `high-stakes`, `physical` or `consumer-harm`. A capability gap is never a reason. Evals handle capability, and they fall away as models improve.

## Who reviews, and when
The reviewing party is the [Customer](/business/nouns/customer) by default. Where the law or the stakes demand more, it is a professional holding the right [Credential](/business/nouns/credential), paid by the customer. A [Studio](/business/nouns/studio) [Role](/business/nouns/role) reviews only in rare cases, such as work the Studio itself guarantees.

Timing follows the buyer. A [b2b](/business/motions/b2b) buyer gets review before delivery, in sync with the work. A [b2c](/business/motions/b2c) product gets review after delivery, by sampling the whole population of outputs.

## Oversight across operating models
The posture never changes with the operating model; who fills the reviewing seat does. An [Autonomous](/agents/operating-models/autonomous) [Startup](/business/nouns/startup) routes credentialed review to an outside professional through [Licensed review](/workflows/processes/licensed-review). A [Multi-human](/agents/operating-models/multi-human) Startup can seat its own licensed staff in the same step.

## In practice
A [Licensed-human marketplace](/products/templates/licensed-marketplace) sells certified translations of court documents. Agents translate at `full`, and the certification is a Reserved Act with posture `performs-step` and reason `regulatory`. A sworn translator the customer pays signs each one, while the marketing pages on the same [Site](/business/nouns/site) carry posture `none`.