Co-Presence¶
Core Idea¶
Co-presence exists when two or more agents are mutually available for awareness and response within one effective interactional here-and-now. Physical proximity is one implementation; timely mediated reciprocity is another.
Scope of Application¶
It applies to face-to-face interaction, remote teamwork, teleoperation, multiplayer systems, animal coordination, and multi-agent protocols.
Clarity¶
The prime separates co-presence from co-location, simultaneity, one-way observation, common ground, and channel fidelity.
Manages Complexity¶
Cases reduce to four gates: mutual awareness, reachability, task-relative response latency, and reciprocity.
Abstract Reasoning¶
If a timely action by either agent can alter the other's next response, both directed paths exist. Removing one path breaks co-presence even when observation or physical proximity remains.
Knowledge Transfer¶
Remote-work tools, telehealth, multi-agent control, and animal signaling share the same design questions about availability, response, delay, and reciprocity.
Examples¶
A live two-way control session can sustain co-presence across distance. A recording can convey rich information but cannot, by itself, support reciprocal availability.
Relationships to Other Abstractions¶
Current abstraction Co-Presence Prime
Parents (1) — more general patterns this builds on
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Co-Presence presupposes Agency Prime
Co-presence presupposes agents capable of detecting one another and selecting responses to that mutually available state.
Children (1) — more specific cases that build on this
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Social Presence Domain-specific is a kind of Co-Presence
Social Presence is the mediated-communication specialization of Co-Presence in which another actor is experienced as currently available through a channel.
Hierarchy path (1) — routes to 1 parentless root
- Co-Presence → Agency
Notes¶
Social Presence is the mediated-communication specialization. Queued for Claude style, source, and citation harmonization.