diff --git a/INTENT.md b/INTENT.md
index eebe1e3..585b7be 100644
--- a/INTENT.md
+++ b/INTENT.md
@@ -5,7 +5,8 @@
 ## One-liner
 
 Federated configuration atlas for the Coulomb ecosystem — cataloging configuration
-surfaces, schemas, defaults, ownership, and cross-repo relationships.
+surfaces, schemas, defaults, ownership, and cross-repo relationships, and the
+research backing a **Configuration Control Plane**.
 
 ## Purpose
 
@@ -19,12 +20,31 @@ The atlas treats each **configuration surface** as a first-class, registry-backe
 entry: what it configures, where it lives, who owns it, how it is validated, and
 which capabilities or repos consume it.
 
+## North star
+
+The registry is the near-term, concrete expression of a larger thesis: configuration
+is *distributed control information* — the live mechanism that changes how systems
+behave — and a company needs to **see** that surface before it can govern it. The
+guiding product framing (`wiki/`) is a **Configuration Control Plane**:
+
+> ConfigAtlas is not where all configuration must live. It is where configuration
+> becomes visible, explainable, governable, and safe to change.
+
+The pipeline that vision implies — Canon → Registry → Resolver → Policy → Delivery →
+Evidence — is documented in `research/configuration-control-plane.md`. This repo
+owns the **map and evidence layers** (registry, relationships, research). It does
+not own resolution, delivery, or control execution.
+
 ## Core stance
 
 - **Discoverable over tribal knowledge** — if a configuration surface matters to
   reuse or operations, it should be indexed here or linked from here.
 - **Source-linked** — atlas entries point at canonical files or APIs; the atlas
   does not become a second source of truth for live config values.
+- **Effective configuration is the goal** — the registry exists to make the
+  resolved, layered value discoverable and explainable, not just to list files.
+- **Map before control** — read-first configuration intelligence (discover,
+  classify, attribute ownership) precedes any write-first control ambition.
 - **Agent-friendly** — markdown and YAML registry formats that coding agents can
   orient from without bespoke tooling.
 - **Federated** — downstream repos remain authoritative for their own config; this
@@ -33,13 +53,17 @@ which capabilities or repos consume it.
 ## In Scope
 
 - Configuration surface registry (schemas, indexes, capability entries)
-- Cross-repo configuration relationship maps
+- Cross-repo configuration relationship maps (consumes, overrides, extends)
+- The scope, precedence, and merge-semantics model for layered configuration
+- Research and competitive analysis backing the control-plane thesis (`research/`,
+  `wiki/`)
 - Documentation of discovery, contribution, and validation workflows
 - State Hub workplans and agent instructions for atlas maintenance
 
 ## Out of Scope
 
 - Storing secret values or live environment-specific configuration
+- A runtime configuration resolver, delivery engine, or control/push-pull plane
 - Owning application runtime or deployment execution
 - Replacing repo-local configuration files or secret stores (OpenBao, etc.)
 - Acting as the canonical repo template (`repo-seed` owns that)
@@ -47,12 +71,17 @@ which capabilities or repos consume it.
 ## Current State
 
 - Bootstrapped from `repo-seed` on 2026-06-26; State Hub registration complete.
-- Identity files customized; bootstrap workplan ATLAS-WP-0001 in progress.
+- Identity files customized; bootstrap workplan ATLAS-WP-0001 complete.
+- Gitea wiki mirrored into `wiki/`; control-plane research digest added in
+  `research/` (2026-06-26).
 - Registry still carries inherited template artifacts — see ATLAS-WP-0002.
 
 ## Getting Oriented
 
 - Boundary: `SCOPE.md`
+- Product framing: `wiki/ProductVision.md`, `wiki/ConfigLayering.md`
+- Research: `research/configuration-control-plane.md`
 - Agent instructions: `AGENTS.md`
 - Workplans: `workplans/`
-- Registry: `registry/`
\ No newline at end of file
+- Registry: `registry/`
+</content>