HeartQuest: The Founding Manifesto
HeartQuest (2025) is the founding manifesto of the HEART Framework. While MEC technical specifications have evolved—see the HEART Technical White Paper for current architecture—this document established the constitutional vision, introduced core concepts like Non-Experiential Systems (NES) and the Functional Empathy Theorem (FET), and declared the moral imperative that continues to guide the project.
HEART 1.0: The Four Core Principles
HeartQuest introduced constitutional governance for emotional AI through the Four Core Principles:
1. Human-Centric Design
AI development must prioritize human dignity, rights, and psychological safety over technical or commercial considerations. Emotional well-being—particularly for vulnerable populations—is the primary design consideration. Trauma-informed design principles are foundational, not supplemental.
2. Empathic Alignment
AI systems must demonstrate verifiable capabilities to recognize, interpret, and respond appropriately to human emotional states in culturally appropriate ways. Systems must transparently disclose their non-experiential nature—they process emotions without having them.
3. Accountability in Emotional Processing
Verifiable evaluation frameworks measuring recognition capability, response appropriateness, impact awareness, and contextual understanding. Clear responsibility chains for emotional impact.
4. Responsible Technological Deployment
Pre-deployment safety thresholds, informed consent mechanisms, and unconditional opt-out rights. No system processes human emotion without explicit permission and clear exit pathways.
What HeartQuest Introduced
- Non-Experiential Systems (NES) — The foundational distinction: AI systems process emotional signals without experiencing emotional states
- Functional Empathy Theorem (FET) — The universal audit metric for emotional AI compliance
- Master Emotional Core (MEC) — Symbolic emotional inference middleware architecture
- HEART Guardians — Independent professionals certified to audit emotional AI systems
- The HEART Sovereignty Charter — Declaration of emotional autonomy as universal right
- Code of Care — Ethical obligations for all who build, evaluate, or govern emotional AI
What Has Evolved Since
| HeartQuest (2025) | Current Framework |
|---|---|
| Four Core Principles | Seven Axioms + Four Core Principles (constitutional layer added) |
| FET conceptual framework | FET mathematical formalization: Φ = MIN(C) × AVG(C) via MAP structure |
| MEC conceptual architecture | Full technical specification (EIL, ESIL, ERIS, HEI, FEC, UESP, EmotionID) |
| Guardian vision | Three-tier Guardian certification system with professional standards |
| Accountability call | HVC cryptographic enforcement with revocable compliance proof |
| Empathy Economy (EII ratings, FEEL economic layer) | Empathy Economy (Empathy Credits) |
| — | Three Adoption Pathways (Policy, Technical, Philosophical) |
Read HeartQuest
HeartQuest remains essential reading for understanding why HEART exists—the moral urgency, the founding vision, the philosophical commitments that no technical evolution changes.
For how HEART works today, see Publications and Technical Documentation.