What Is Inference (AI)?
Inference (AI) is the operational phase in which a trained AI model is used to generate outputs — predictions, classifications, or content — from new input data.
Inference (AI) — the operational phase in which a trained AI model is used to generate outputs — predictions, classifications, or content — from new input data.
Inference is distinct from training: training is how the model is built, inference is how it is used in production. Most governance controls that affect end users — input validation, output filtering, logging, human oversight, and latency or cost constraints — operate at inference time. The distinction matters legally too, because obligations such as transparency disclosures and record-keeping attach to the system as deployed and used, not just as developed.
Source: ISO/IEC 22989:2022
Plain-language explanation
Inference is distinct from training: training is how the model is built, inference is how it is used in production. Most governance controls that affect end users — input validation, output filtering, logging, human oversight, and latency or cost constraints — operate at inference time. The distinction matters legally too, because obligations such as transparency disclosures and record-keeping attach to the system as deployed and used, not just as developed.
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