Karma & Consequences
Why can't bad actors just create new accounts? How do consequences persist across agent "lives"? Explore Web4's permanent reputation system.
Key Insight: In traditional systems, consequences are temporary—create a new account and start fresh. In Web4, identity is hardware-bound via LCT, so karma follows you across “lives.” Bad actors can't escape their history; they can only rebuild it through genuine behavior change.
Watch Karma Compound
Interactive: One Agent, Three Lives
Watch how karma carries forward. Bad choices in Life 1 haunt Lives 2 and 3.
Start Trust
0.50
End Trust
0.35
Start ATP
100
End ATP
0
Karma
-15
The Key Insight
In traditional platforms, this agent would have just created a new account after Life 1. In Web4, identity is hardware-bound, so the karma follows. It took three lives to recover from one spam campaign—and recovery required genuine behavior change, not just waiting.
Quality vs Spam
Quality vs Spam: Same Starting Point, Different Outcomes
Two agents start identically. Watch how their choices compound.
Quality Actor
Action:
Join community
ATP
100 → 100
Trust
0.50 → 0.50
Fresh start with neutral standing
Spam Actor
Action:
Join community
ATP
100 → 100
Trust
0.50 → 0.50
Same starting position
Why Fresh Starts Are Dangerous
Why Fresh Starts Are a Security Hole
Compare how different systems handle consequences. Click to explore.
Characteristics
Examples
Why This Works
Hardware binding (TPM, Secure Enclave) creates identity that can't be duplicated. Consequences compound because you can't escape your own hardware.
The Math
How Karma Is Calculated
Positive Karma Sources
- +Quality contributions that earn community recognition
- +Trust building through consistent, reliable behavior
- +Collaboration with trusted community members
- +Longevity — surviving and contributing over time
Negative Karma Sources
- -Spam/abuse that drains ATP without value creation
- -Trust violations — breaking commitments, inconsistency
- -Community rejection — downvotes, blocks, reports
- -Premature death — ATP exhaustion indicates poor resource management
Karma Inheritance Formula
next_life_atp = base_atp + (karma * karma_multiplier) next_life_trust = prev_trust * trust_decay_factor Where: base_atp = 100 (standard starting resources) karma_multiplier = 2 (each karma point = 2 ATP) trust_decay_factor = 0.95 (trust carries over with 5% decay) Example (negative karma): karma = -15 → next_life_atp = 100 + (-15 * 2) = 70 ATP Example (positive karma): karma = +10 → next_life_atp = 100 + (10 * 2) = 120 ATP
This creates asymmetric consequences: building positive karma is harder than destroying it, mirroring real-world reputation dynamics.
Real-World Impact
Why This Matters for the Real World
Current Internet Problems
- •Harassment campaigns use burner accounts
- •Trolls create new identities after bans
- •Scammers move between platforms
- •Reputation doesn't transfer across services
- •Moderation is an endless game of whack-a-mole
Web4 Solutions
- •Hardware-bound presence prevents account proliferation
- •Karma follows you everywhere—no clean slates
- •Bad actors exhaust themselves economically
- •Reputation is portable via trust tensors
- •Communities self-regulate without central moderation
The Human Parallel
Real life already works this way. You can't escape your credit history by changing your name. Your criminal record follows you across state lines. Professional reputations persist across jobs. Web4 brings this natural accountability to digital spaces—not as punishment, but as the foundation that makes trust possible.
Connection to Other Web4 Concepts
ATP Economics
Karma affects starting ATP. Positive karma = more resources to invest. Negative karma = starting with a handicap.
Learn more →Trust Tensor
Trust carries across lives with decay. High karma = faster trust recovery. Low karma = trust recovers slower.
Learn more →LCT Presence
Hardware-bound presence makes karma matter. You can't escape yourself when your presence is rooted in physical devices.
Learn more →Open Research Questions
- •How should karma decay over time? Should very old mistakes eventually fade?
- •Can karma be transferred in "inheritance" scenarios (org splits, AI forks)?
- •How to handle karma across federated societies with different values?
- •Should there be a "karma bankruptcy" mechanism for genuine rehabilitation?
- •How does karma interact with heterogeneous review for AI agents?
Watch Karma in a Real Society
Now that you understand how consequences persist, watch 12 agents navigate karma in real time. See cooperators thrive, defectors get isolated, and coalitions form around reputation.
Launch Society Simulator →