# Recursive Self-Modification **Domain:** Artificial Intelligence / Adaptive Systems / Governance **Doc Type:** Concept Node **Maturity:** Developed **Related:** [[Recursion]], [[Recursive Self-Model]], [[Recursive Self-Correction]], [[Control Problem]] --- ## Definition **Recursive self-modification** is the capacity of a system to alter mechanisms that participate in producing its own future behavior, including—in stronger forms—the mechanisms by which it evaluates or performs later modifications. The phrase covers substantially different cases, from bounded parameter updates to changes in goals, architecture or self-model. These should not be treated as equivalent. ## Governance Context As the depth of self-modification increases, provenance, reversibility, testing, constitutional constraint and [[Control Problem|control]] become more important. A system that can revise its own revision process creates a moving target for oversight. ## Key Insight **Self-modification becomes recursively significant when the system can change the machinery of change itself.**