A Control-Theoretic Foundation for Agentic Systems

Abstract: This paper develops a control-theoretic framework for analyzing agentic systems embedded within feedback control loops. In such systems, an AI agent may adapt controller parameters, select among control strategies, invoke tools, reconfigure decision architectures, or modify control objectives during operation. We formalize these capabilities by interpreting agency as hierarchical decision authority over the control architecture. A unified dynamical representation is introduced that incorporates memory, learning, tool activation, interaction signals, and goal descriptors within a single closed-loop structure. Based on this representation, we define a five-level hierarchy of agency ranging from reactive rule-based control to the synthesis of control objectives and controller architectures. The framework is presented in both nonlinear and linear settings, allowing agentic behaviors to be interpreted using standard control-theoretic constructs such as feedback gains, switching signals, parameter adaptation laws, and quadratic cost functions. The analysis shows that increasing agency introduces dynamical mechanisms including time-varying adaptation, endogenous switching, decision-induced delays, and structural reconfiguration of the control pipeline. This perspective provides a mathematical foundation for analyzing stability, safety, and performance of AI-enabled control systems.