# Human Control Is the Anchor, Not the Answer: Early Divergence of Oversight in Agentic AI Communities

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.09286 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.09286/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Agent threats, guardrails and governance, one of 16 directions in LLM agents and tool use.
- Builds on 7 of its 29 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 10 Feb 2026.

## Placed in

- LLM agents and tool use / [Agent threats, guardrails and governance](https://mlsanity.com/agents/agent-threats-guardrails-and-governance/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 7 of 7)

- [CoAuthor: Designing a Human-AI Collaborative Writing Dataset for Exploring Language Model Capabilities](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2201.06796/) (2022)
- [AI Transparency in the Age of LLMs: A Human-Centered Research Roadmap](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.01941/) (2023)
- [Wordcraft: a Human-AI Collaborative Editor for Story Writing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2107.07430/) (2021)
- [Improving Human-AI Collaboration With Descriptions of AI Behavior](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.06937/) (2023)
- [Exploring Challenges and Opportunities to Support Designers in Learning to Co-create with AI-based Manufacturing Design Tools](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.00192/) (2023)
- [Exploring Silicon-Based Societies: An Early Study of the Moltbook Agent Community](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.02613/) (2026)
- [Explainable Interface for Human-Autonomy Teaming: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.02583/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [AI Agents Push Humans Out of the Loop](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.23642/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Oversight for agentic AI is often discussed as a single goal ("human control"), yet early adoption may produce role-specific expectations. We present a comparative analysis of two newly active Reddit communities in Jan--Feb 2026 that reflect different socio-technical roles: r/OpenClaw (deployment and operations) and r/Moltbook (agent-centered social interaction). We conceptualize this period as an early-stage crystallization phase, where oversight expectations form before norms reach equilibrium. Using topic modeling in a shared comparison space, a coarse-grained oversight-theme abstraction, engagement-weighted salience, and divergence tests, we show the communities are strongly separable (JSD =0.418, cosine =0.372, permutation p=0.0005). Across both communities, "human control" is an anchor term, but its operational meaning diverges: r/OpenClaw emphasizes execution guardrails and recovery (action-risk), while r/Moltbook emphasizes identity, legitimacy, and accountability in public interaction (meaning-risk). The resulting distinction offers a portable lens for designing and evaluating oversight mechanisms that match agent role, rather than applying one-size-fits-all control policies.