The new book by Rami Cherri

The Moment Before

Why institutions are losing control over their own actions in the age of AI, and how Machine Law gives it back

Friday, 4:47 p.m. A bank transfers 25 million euros. The payment was approved, two authorized signatories had signed, every system had checked. But three minutes earlier, the decisive authority had been revoked. This book shows why institutions are losing control over their own actions in the age of AI, and how Machine Law gives it back.

Buy nowFounder Edition · 99,90 €▶ Watch the trailerEditions and prices
348 pagesHardcover · Paperback · E-bookA5 formatISBN 978-3-567-03595-1
Book cover of The Moment Before by Rami Cherri
Published with tredition · Imprint immo.quick

Published on 12 October 2026

Book details, editions and ISBNs

The Moment Before is Rami Cherri’s nonfiction book about the gap between an institutional decision and its actual effect. It explains Machine Law, execution rights, authority and control in the age of autonomous AI through a continuous fictional case and documented real-world cases. The English edition has 348 pages; the German edition, Der Moment davor, has 386 pages. Both have been available as hardcover, paperback and e-book since 12 October 2026.

Author
Rami Cherri
Title
The Moment Before
Subtitle
Why institutions are losing control over their own actions in the age of AI, and how Machine Law gives it back
Language / length
English · 348 pages · DIN A5

Personally signed hardcovers with an individual inscription: Founder Edition · 99,90 €. Delivery within Germany included.

In brief

What is “The Moment Before” about?

“The Moment Before” is a nonfiction book by Rami Cherri about the instant between a decision and its effect. Using one continuous model case and documented real cases, it shows why permissions, logs and checks so often fail to prevent major damage.

As an answer, the book describes Machine Law: an architecture that checks, before every protected action, whether a valid execution right exists at exactly that moment. If it does not, the action does not happen. Every decision leaves a verifiable receipt instead of a mere log entry.

Author
Rami Cherri
Publisher
immo.quick · produced with tredition
Length
348 pages, 26 chapters in six parts
Format
A5 (14.8 × 21 cm)
Editions
Hardcover, paperback, e-book (EPUB)
Language
English
German edition
Der Moment davor
ISBN
978-3-567-03596-8 (Hardcover)
978-3-567-03595-1 (Paperback)
978-3-567-03597-5 (E-book)

Trailer

The Moment Before in 64 seconds

Book trailer with narration and score. The times, the amount and the sequence come from the book’s prologue.

The story

One bank, one Friday, three minutes.

The book opens on a Friday afternoon at Hansa Meridian Bank, a fictional bank in Hamburg. At 4:44 p.m. the board signs a resolution with immediate effect. At 4:47 p.m. a payment of 25 million euros leaves the bank anyway: approved, checked, logged.

On Monday the board sits in front of a flawless timeline. Every user is known, every approval documented, every step correctly logged. The technology did exactly what it was built to do. And none of the systems asked whether the payment was still allowed at that moment.

“An action is not legitimate simply because a system is able to perform it.” A principle of Machine Law
From the real world

The model case is fictional; the pattern is not. The book sets it against documented cases, including Bangladesh Bank, Knight Capital and Wirecard, each sourced in the register at the end. The two levels are never mixed.

What you take away

Six insights that change how you see control.

Execution right

Identity, permission, authority and execution right are four different things. The book shows why only the last one counts at the decisive moment.

The six questions

What must be settled before every protected action: who, what, on which basis, where, when and under which preconditions.

A key for one door

The execution capability: limited, bound to exactly one effect and usable only once.

From log to proof

A log entry narrates what happened. A receipt proves under which rules it was allowed to happen.

Fail-closed

What happens when something is missing, and how genuine emergencies remain possible without punching holes in the boundary.

The board’s questions

An examination matrix and a glossary that leadership and supervisors can use to test their own organization.

Contents

26 chapters in six parts.

Before You BeginFriday, 4:47 p.m.From Decision to EvidenceMonday, 4:47 p.m.Glossary and Examination Matrix

Part I · The Pain

Why institutions lose control even though they believe they have it

  1. 01The Illusion of Control
  2. 02Who Is Actually Allowed to Do This?
  3. 03The Gap Between Decision and Effect
  4. 04When Machines Act

Part II · The Mental Trap

Why the familiar prevents the change that is needed

  1. 05The Probability Trap
  2. 06The Subscription Trap
  3. 07Why Smart People Say No

Part III · The Solution

Machine Law: how a boundary in the moment before is built

  1. 08An Idea in One Sentence
  2. 09The Six Questions
  3. 10The Graph That Must Close
  4. 11A Key for Exactly One Door
  5. 12T=0
  6. 13When Law Becomes a Checking Path
  7. 14Fail-Closed and the Honest Emergency

Part IV · The Proof

How a decision becomes evidence that still holds up in ten years

  1. 15From Log to Proof
  2. 16The Memory of the Institution
  3. 17Limits as Strength

Part V · The World

The same moment everywhere: Machine Law in finance, government, security, healthcare, industry and society

  1. 18Money That Does Not Come Back
  2. 19Land and State
  3. 20When the Attacker Is Already Inside
  4. 21Life, Steel and Air
  5. 22Stadium, Studio, Screen
  6. 23Those Who Protect Others
  7. 24Recognition Is Not Authority

Part VI · The Way Forward

How an institution begins tomorrow

  1. 25The First Protected Effect
  2. 26The Questions the Board Must Ask

Who it is for

Written for people who carry responsibility.

For board members, chief executives and supervisory boards who are liable for what their organization does. For those responsible for compliance, risk management, internal audit and information security. For leaders in banking, insurance, public administration, healthcare and critical infrastructure, for lawyers and supervisors, and for everyone who introduces AI systems and has to answer for them. No programming knowledge is needed; every technical term is explained before it is used.

Now available: three editions.

All three standard editions are available from tredition. Order a personally inscribed hardcover directly from us as the Founder Edition.

Founder Edition · Direkt vom Autor

Personally signed. Inscribed to you.

A hardcover signed by Rami Cherri with a personal inscription. Choose the German or English edition. We source the book, arrange the author’s inscription and ship it directly. The Founder Edition is the standard hardcover with a personal inscription, not a revised text or a numbered limited edition.

99,90 €

€99.90 total per copy, including delivery within Germany. Advance payment by bank transfer only. International delivery on request. Availability and delivery timing are confirmed by email before payment.

Choose inscription and prepare request

press@immoquick.eu

Der Moment davorThe Moment Before
Rami Cherri

Author

Rami Cherri

Rami Cherri is the founder and CEO of immo.quick Global and the architect of Machine Law. He does not come from software development; he thinks from responsibility: who may act, when does that authority end, and how can it be proven? From that question he built the immo.quick Serverless Edition, which enforces this boundary in operation.

He made his foundational work “Machine Law. Why Compliance Must Execute” available to institutions. “The Moment Before” is his first book for a general readership.

Machine Law, the foundational work →Understand ACES →

Frequently asked questions

Questions about the book

What is “The Moment Before” about?

The moment between a decision and its effect. The book shows why institutions lose control over their own actions despite permissions, logs and checks, and describes Machine Law, an architecture that checks before every protected action whether a valid execution right exists.

What is Machine Law?

Machine Law is the principle that an action is not legitimate simply because a system is able to perform it. Before every protected effect it must be established that authority, rule, jurisdiction, time and preconditions are valid together. If anything is missing, there is no execution, and every decision is recorded as a verifiable receipt.

Do I need a technical background?

No. The book is written for people who carry responsibility, not for programmers. Every technical term is explained before it is used, and a glossary brings all terms together.

Is Hansa Meridian Bank real?

No. The bank, its people and its story are entirely fictional. Real cases appear in separate boxes headed “From the real world” and are documented in the register of sources.

Which editions are available and what do they cost?

Hardcover €84.90, paperback €74.90 and e-book €49.99. Now available.

Is there a German edition?

Yes. The German edition is titled “Der Moment davor”. ISBN hardcover 978-3-567-03558-6, softcover 978-3-567-03557-9, e-book 978-3-567-03559-3.

How does it differ from “Machine Law”?

“Machine Law” is the foundational work for institutions and sets out the doctrine. “The Moment Before” tells the same principle through a model case and real cases for a general readership and shows how it works in finance, government, healthcare, industry and security.

Does the book cover ACES?

Yes. Chapter 23, “Those Who Protect Others”, describes ACES, the system for fitness evidence and fair personnel selection in professions where people protect others.

Readings, talks, press

For review copies, interviews, talks and events, write to info@immoquick.eu.

Send an email

The book in German and English

Both language editions cover the same Machine Law architecture. Their language and typeset length differ. Each language and format has its own ISBN.

Der Moment davor · German book page