What is Audit-Ready Automation?
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Quick Answer
Audit-Ready Automation is AI-powered decision-making that maintains complete provenance tracking, enabling every decision to be traced back to its inputs, rules, and rationale. Essential for regulated industries where decisions must be defensible to regulators, customers, and internal compliance teams.
Definition
Key Points
- Complete decision provenance from input to output
- Citations for every rule, policy, and knowledge source applied
- Immutable audit logs that cannot be altered after the fact
- Timestamps, user context, and system state captured
- Explainable rationale in business terms, not technical jargon
- Compliance-ready documentation for regulatory audits
When NOT to Use This
- For low-stakes decisions where auditability isn't required
- When speed is more critical than explainability
- For exploratory AI applications not subject to regulation
- In non-regulated industries without compliance requirements
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should audit trails be retained?
Retention requirements vary by industry. Healthcare typically requires 7+ years, insurance 5-10 years. Audit-Ready systems support configurable retention policies aligned with your regulatory obligations.
Can audit trails be accessed in real-time?
Yes. Audit-Ready systems provide immediate access to decision provenance. When a customer disputes a decision or a regulator inquires, the full audit trail is instantly available.
Do audit trails slow down AI decisions?
Minimal impact. Well-architected Audit-Ready systems log asynchronously. Decision latency remains sub-second while complete provenance is captured in parallel.