Technical note

Buying AI well: thirty checks in five phases

An inspector holding a checklist on a clipboard.

Key takeaways

  • Five phases, thirty checks, graduated by risk — published as an open standard.
  • Without a documented phase 0, no process opens: most failures are decided before the tender.
  • Classify the system, appoint a technical contract manager, accept against agreed tests: the three that separate most, and the three that depend on the entity.
  • The standard applies by object, not by channel: small-value contracting does not exempt.
  • Total lifecycle cost is demanded in the offer — so the contract-system mismatch is not discovered at the budget amendment.

The operable standard a procurement office can follow without being expert in machine learning — with demands graduated by risk, and the three items that really separate, which are not the ones usually assumed.

The full document is currently published in Spanish; an English edition is prepared when demand warrants it. The Spanish record carries the complete summary and contents.