LATTICE: A Governance-First Architecture for Authorized Autonomous AI Operations

Deploying autonomous AI agents in high-consequence operational environments requires organizational authorization, yet few frameworks provide end-to-end, testable governance mechanisms suitable for such authorization decisions. This paper introduces LATTICE (Layered Agentic Triad Topology for Intelligent Coordinated Execution), a governance-first architecture that reframes the authorization question from 'do we trust this AI?' to 'do we trust this architecture?' The latter question is answerable through engineering validation rather than assumptions about model behavior. LATTICE enforces separation of concerns across planning, execution, and governance functions through a 1+3 Grid Cell pattern, ensuring no single component can both decide actions and judge compliance. The architecture implements policy-as-code enforcement with deterministic verdicts, gated execution paths that prevent unauthorized actions, confidence-based escalation to human operators, and cryptographic audit trails that preserve complete decision provenance. LATTICE provides a pathway for responsible deployment of autonomous AI in defense, critical infrastructure, and regulated industries where authorization requires verifiable governance rather than trust in AI behavior.