What is the best approach to AI governance for startups?

Keep it simple and focused on outcomes. Name one owner, list AI use cases with a risk tier, publish clear guardrails, and add short reviews for high risk cases. Bake checks into your existing product and security processes. Scale the program as risk grows.

Why it matters
Teams ship faster when rules are clear and short.

Deep dive

• Owner and RACI: name one accountable lead and write who does what.

• Use case register: describe each use, the purpose, data sources, and risk tier.

• Guardrails: simple rules on sensitive data, claims, and human review.

• Reviews: quick checks for high risk or public facing use.

• Monitoring: basic logs, drift checks, and retraining plans.

Checklist

1. Publish owner and RACI.

2. Create a use case register.

3. Write a one page guardrail policy.

4. Add a short review for high risk.

5. Monitor and improve each quarter.

Definitions

• Risk tier: a simple score that groups low, medium, and high risk uses.

• Human review: a person can override important outcomes.