Foundations
Governance Layer
Governance interprets observed facts under explicit rule systems (EU AI Act, ISO standards, internal policies). Governance is allowed to be normative — but it must remain versioned, contestable, and non-destructive.
What governance answers
“Given these observed facts, what obligations or controls apply under a specific framework — and what changed since last time?”
Who it serves
Compliance & legal
Translate facts into defensible interpretations using a stated framework version.
The same system may be “high-risk” under one context and “limited risk” under another — governance makes assumptions explicit.
Executives & boards
Understand exposure and readiness without turning the Observed Index into a narrative instrument.
Example: a board asks what changed since last quarter and receives a delta-based TrustCycle summary.
Non-negotiable boundary
Governance must never rewrite observed history. If an interpretation changes, the governance artifact changes — not the underlying facts.
Next step
After governance produces artifacts, verification proves integrity and publication state — without claiming goodness or compliance.