---
slug: "Bid"
name: "Bid"
type: "Economics"
layer: "Society"
ref: "Bid#647f"
sema_id: "sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:647f5a901a75ad0c5535dd1a16a2e2eb1f4295d88e55b592f101ea393c9d23b1"
tags: ["Society","Economics"]
updated: 2026-11-11
mindscape: "bootstrap"
index_url: https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/index.json
url: https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Bid/
related: ["Artifact","Budget","CommitmentDevice","ComputeBudget","Solver","Task","Value","AtomicBid","Award","Estimate"]
---

# Bid

Binding offer from solver to execute task

Layer: Society · Category: Economics

## Mechanism

A binding offer [Artifact](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Artifact.md) from a [Solver](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Solver.md) to execute a [Task](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Task.md). It declares: 1. Expected [Value](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Value.md) Cost (Time/Tokens/USD), 2. Confidence Interval (probability of success), 3. Capability Match (which parts of the [Task](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Task.md) the [Solver](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Solver.md) can handle). It serves as the input for the [ComputeBudget](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/ComputeBudget.md) Go/No-Go decision. A Bid acts as a [CommitmentDevice](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/CommitmentDevice.md): [Solver](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Solver.md)s cannot exceed bid cost without explicit renegotiation, so the penalty for overshoot outweighs any short-term benefit of understating.

## Invariants

- Binding: [Solver](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Solver.md) cannot exceed Bid cost without requesting [Budget](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Budget.md) expansion.
- Pre-Execution: Must be generated before work begins.
- Verifiable: Bid components must be objectively measurable post-hoc.

## Failure modes

- Underestimation: Bid is too optimistic, leading to [Budget](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Budget.md) overrun.
- Overestimation: Bid is too pessimistic, causing rejection of viable work.
- Capability Mismatch: [Solver](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Solver.md) claims abilities it doesn't have.
- Confidence Theater: Stated confidence doesn't reflect actual uncertainty.

## Signature

- `Artifact(Value)`

## Data schema

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "required": [
    "issuer_id",
    "terms",
    "signature"
  ],
  "properties": {
    "issuer_id": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Identity of the Solver making the bid"
    },
    "beneficiary_id": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Identity of the Task issuer"
    },
    "terms": {
      "type": "object",
      "description": "Cost, confidence, and capability claims",
      "properties": {
        "expected_cost": {
          "type": "number",
          "description": "Expected Value Cost (Time/Tokens/USD)"
        },
        "confidence_interval": {
          "type": "array",
          "description": "Probability range of success [low, high]"
        },
        "capability_match": {
          "type": "array",
          "description": "Which parts of the task the solver can handle"
        }
      }
    },
    "signature": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Cryptographic proof of commitment"
    }
  }
}
```

## Builds on

- [Artifact](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Artifact.md) (Infrastructure; References)
- [Budget](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Budget.md) (Infrastructure; References)
- [CommitmentDevice](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/CommitmentDevice.md) (Mind; References)
- [ComputeBudget](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/ComputeBudget.md) (Mind; References)
- [Solver](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Solver.md) (Mind; References)
- [Task](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Task.md) (Infrastructure; References)
- [Value](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Value.md) (Infrastructure; References)

## Used by

- [AtomicBid](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/AtomicBid.md) (Society; Composes with)
- [Award](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Award.md) (Society; Accepts)
- [Estimate](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Estimate.md) (Mind; Yields)

## Identity

- Sema ID: `sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:647f5a901a75ad0c5535dd1a16a2e2eb1f4295d88e55b592f101ea393c9d23b1`
- Ref: `Bid#647f`
- Supersedes:
  - `sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:cf07d1105de889786c1fbb618128ab03b34964fa4a7ab983c8d0f4d1d984b43e`
  - `sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:1ebadf0e232c35605addcb43f2c2ceab124a7f710c0471cefb989189661c8d3a`
  - `sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:5c45e9bd8858829e5a5cde5ad4f3ab26f4bb6937f88c1ddde40798b58799a266`
  - `sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:f083ba4d6bda1e6f41425819a11da70828e6ee6dbe843ada68ef1e0696b9bf17`
  - `sema:Bid#mh:SHA-256:79cf8292cd6dc35c67b9a91f5a9f31962b12efc5ceb36ec84e1876142bce90ef`

## Links

- [Pattern page](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Bid/)
- [View in the interactive graph](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/#Bid)
- [JSON](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/Bid.json)
- [Index of all patterns](https://mindscape.pages.dev/bootstrap/index.json)