Presence-Centric Computing as the Interaction Model for Adaptive and Decentralized Systems

Traditional computing systems are organized around explicit interactions mediated by devices, applications, and user-initiated commands. These interaction models assume discrete sessions, static interfaces, and centralized coordination. As Adaptive Computing (AC) environments mature, these assumptions no longer hold. Continuous context acquisition, distributed execution, and environment? coupled computation give rise to a new interaction paradigm: presence-centric computing. In presence?-centric systems, interaction is not initiated through queries or interfaces but emerges from the continuous co-?presence of users, devices, and services within an environment. This paper defines presence-centric computing as a foundational architectural model for adaptive systems, contrasts it with device- and application-centric paradigms, and analyzes its implications for identity, intent inference, execution locality, and system coordination. We argue that presence-centric computing is a necessary systems interaction model for decentralized execution and that it enables the collapse of traditional interaction brokers by embedding coordination directly into the computational fabric.