Powered by OpenAIRE graph
Found an issue? Give us feedback
ZENODOarrow_drop_down
ZENODO
Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
ZENODO
Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
ZENODO
Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
versions View all 3 versions
addClaim

The Hardware Truth Landscape — Pirates, Traders, and Anchors

Authors: Ezell, Theo;

The Hardware Truth Landscape — Pirates, Traders, and Anchors

Abstract

The transition of artificial intelligence from a generative curiosity to an agentic workforce has precipitated a fundamental crisis in digital governance. This paper argues that the prevailing "Software Governance" paradigm—which relies on system prompts and application-layer logic—is insufficient for securing high-stakes autonomous agents. To this end, we analyze the "Hardware Renaissance" of 2026, a shift characterized by the rapid migration of agentic infrastructure toward Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs). While the underlying silicon—ranging from Intel SGX/TDX and NVIDIA H100 to IBM Z—is often shared across the industry, the architectural frameworks built atop these foundations are designed to solve radically different problems. Consequently, this taxonomic survey examines five distinct architectural archetypes: The Privacy Box (Oasis Network), The Pirate Ship (Phala Network), The Dark Pool (Flashbots SUAVE), The IP Vault (Super Protocol), and The Governance Anchor (The Citadel Protocol). We provide a detailed technical breakdown of their respective attestation flows, memory isolation mechanisms, and key management strategies. Ultimately, we conclude that while decentralized frameworks optimize for privacy or censorship resistance, the "Governance Anchor" model establishes the requisite standard for enterprise compliance (ISO 42001).

Keywords

Privacy-Preserving AI, AI Governance, MEV, Hardware Root of Trust, Trusted Execution Environments (TEE), ISO 42001, Confidential Computing

  • BIP!
    Impact byBIP!
    selected citations
    These citations are derived from selected sources.
    This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
    0
    popularity
    This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
    Average
    influence
    This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
    Average
    impulse
    This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
    Average
Powered by OpenAIRE graph
Found an issue? Give us feedback
selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
0
Average
Average
Average
Upload OA version
Are you the author of this publication? Upload your Open Access version to Zenodo!
It’s fast and easy, just two clicks!