Recursive self improvement that stays calm, testable, and human led
This atlas turns a fast moving field into a steady reading path. It maps anchor papers, reviews public code with a strict spam filter, and pairs the story with a runnable loop. Each cycle tries one small change, tests it in full, and keeps only what proves value.
Papers mapped
A 2026 survey across four loop families plus foundations
SWE bench path
Reported Darwin Godel Machine movement in percent
Change per cycle
Small diffs keep review human scale and safe
Suite for promotion
Partial tests guide search, full suite decides
Start With Simple Words
A calm first pass that explains recursive self improvement with short sentences and clear pictures.
The Core Loop From Task To Kept Win
Planner, actor, trace, evaluator, reflector, proposer, gate, and memory working in steady rhythm.
The loop in six steady beats
Read from top to bottom as one breath. Each beat has one owner and one output. The gate between try and keep is the heart of the design.
Task arrives
A narrow goal enters with scope, budget, and stop rules written in plain form.
Plan and act
The planner sets one aim. The actor writes code while the recorder saves the trace.
Score and reflect
Tests run first. Judges review second. A short lesson names pattern and repair.
Propose one patch
One small change ships with one matching test on a separate branch.
Gate and verdict
Frozen paths are checked. The full suite runs. Accept moves forward, reject archives.
Memory compounds
Wins update method. Losses update lessons. The next round starts stronger.
Research Map Across Papers
Anchor works and recent advances that shape the atlas, organized from classic theory to current loops.
Verified code, not keyword noise
Public repos are sorted into trusted references, useful studies, and spam patterns with clear signals for each verdict.