Mats Heming Julner — December 28, 2025
Most on-chain automation today implicitly collapses time, authority, and execution into a single actor.
Whether it’s a bot, a keeper network, a cron-style scheduler, or a multisig, the pattern is the same:
someone (or something) both decides when things happen and forces them to happen.
That coupling creates familiar problems:
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custodial risk
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discretionary execution
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fragile failure modes
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difficulty reasoning about safety when the operator disappears
I want to propose, and demonstrate, a different execution model.
Core idea
Time advances publicly. Actions occur only as a consequence of time + pre-authorized rules.
In this model:
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Advancing time does not force execution
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Execution cannot occur without time advancing
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No actor can choose outcomes
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No actor holds custody
The only thing anyone can do is apply time.
What changes when time is separated from action
Traditional automation works like this:
At the right time, execute these actions.
This system works like this:
Advance time. If rules permit actions at this time, they may occur. Otherwise nothing happens.
That distinction sounds subtle, but it has concrete consequences:
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“Downtime” does not break the system, it only pauses time
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No scheduler can force transfers
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No bot has discretionary power
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Revocation immediately stops future flows
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Misbehavior is contained by construction
Automation becomes governed, not commanded.
Continuum: a live demonstration
Continuum is a minimal, continuously running demonstration of this execution model.
What it shows:
- A closed economic loop
(Employer → Workers → Merchants → Treasury → Employer)
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All value movement executed via permissioned pulls (ERC-8102 / ERC-8103)
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Time enforced by a public crank
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No private key with unrestricted transfer authority
What it does not rely on:
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No cron job deciding payments
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No treasury wallet pushing funds
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No bot holding custody
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No hidden operator
If the runner goes offline, nothing breaks.
Time simply stops advancing until someone applies it again.
Why this isn’t “just automation”
This is not about payments per se.
It’s about execution structure.
Instead of automating actions, the system automates the application of time.
Actions are not triggered by an operator, they are revealed as allowed once time advances and rules already exist.
In other words:
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Time is public
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Authority is pre-bounded
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Execution is conditional, not imperative
Relation to ERC-8102 / ERC-8103
The permissioned-pull primitives (ERC-8102 / ERC-8103) make this model possible by ensuring:
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All transfers are bounded
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All flows are revocable
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No executor ever gains custody
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Authorization is explicit and inspectable
Continuum combines these primitives with a public time mechanism to show how governed automation can operate without custody or discretion.
Live instance
A live instance of Continuum is running here:
The dashboard shows balances, agents, and time progression.
It is evidence of behavior, not a control surface.
Closing
This is not a proposal to replace keepers, bots, or schedulers outright.
It’s an exploration of a different execution invariant:
Time can be advanced by anyone, but outcomes can be bent by no one.
I’ve written a longer observational paper documenting what emerged from running this live, for those interested.
Feedback, critiques, and alternative framings are very welcome.