# Founding and Operating Principles

Record ID: AB5D-POL-001

Record version: 1.1.0

Published: 2026-08-10

Research cutoff: 2026-08-10

Source commit: 8fc9554267b1e1dc82abc4f422151e3ebbc90723

Status: Adopted

Effective date: 2026-08-10

Defines AB5D as a collector-led reference institution for the AB[500] and establishes evidence, openness, bounded scope, revision, and stewardship as operating principles.

## Provisions

1. AB5D documents the AB[500] as a historically bounded field: the first 500 projects carrying the official Art Blocks ab500 designation.
2. Institutional records distinguish verified observations from supplied metadata, interpretation, and unresolved research.
3. Material records receive stable identifiers, publication dates, versions, research cutoffs, and revision histories.
4. Machine-readable access is part of publication, not a secondary export.
5. Corrections preserve an audit trail. Substantive earlier claims are not silently overwritten.
6. AB5D may operate through founder and editorial decisions until a membership body and voting mechanism are formally constituted.