Glossary

A shared vocabulary for governed AI operations.

The Cortex Glossary explains the public terms used across the website so senior stakeholders, internal champions and specialist teams can use the same language. Definitions are readable without diagrams.

A

Governance

Accountability

Keeping decision ownership clear as AI-enabled activity increases, so it remains evident who is responsible for what.

Related: Runtime Governance · Governance Evidence

Assurance

Accountability record

Structured evidence that helps show who was involved, what activity took place and where responsibility remained visible during AI-enabled use.

Related: Cortex Ledger · Governance Evidence

Platform

AI capability

The AI model, provider, tool or service capability being used to support an activity. In Cortex materials, this does not refer to the Cortex Atlas operational model.

Related: Cortex Bridge · Cortex Gate

Governance

AI-enabled activity

Work, analysis, recommendations, decisions, actions or operational processes that are supported, influenced or mediated by AI.

Related: Runtime Governance · Governance Evidence

Assurance

Assurance and regulatory alignment

How Cortex helps provide operational context, traceability and evidence that can support internal governance, assurance and regulatory-alignment conversations — without claiming certification or compliance.

Related: Assurance & Regulatory Alignment

C

Platform

Controlled demonstration

A bounded demonstration of how operational context, runtime governance and evidence come together — used where appropriate during an engagement.

Related: Contact

Platform

Cortex Atlas

The Cortex operational context plane: a structured view of the people, processes, systems, data, infrastructure and dependencies AI-enabled activity may affect.

Related: Cortex Atlas · Operational Context Architecture

Platform

Cortex Bridge

The Cortex provider and runtime abstraction plane, helping governance stay coherent as models, providers and runtime environments evolve.

Related: Cortex Bridge

Platform

Cortex Conduit

The Cortex runtime governance plane, connecting AI-enabled activity to context, authority, control and evidence as it moves through operational flows.

Related: Cortex Conduit · Runtime Governance

Platform

Cortex Gate

The Cortex interoperability boundary plane, governing how AI interacts with systems, tools, models, providers and operating environments.

Related: Cortex Gate · Interoperability Governance

Platform

Cortex Ledger

The Cortex evidence and accountability plane, supporting the evidence needed to review, assure and improve governed AI operations.

Related: Cortex Ledger · Governance Evidence

Platform

Cortex Lens

The Cortex observability and traceability plane, making AI-enabled activity visible and traceable in operational context.

Related: Cortex Lens · Observability & Traceability

E

Assurance

Evidence record

A structured record that can support review of AI-enabled activity, including relevant context, boundary, output or accountability information.

Related: Cortex Ledger · Governance Evidence

F

Architecture

Federated runtime governance

Maintaining operational context, evidence and accountability across distributed AI operating conditions — multiple domains, teams, suppliers or jurisdictions.

Related: Federated Runtime Governance

G

Governance

Governance boundary

A point at which policy, permission, risk, assurance or accountability conditions need to be understood and applied to AI-enabled activity.

Related: Interoperability Governance · Cortex Gate

Governance

Governance evidence

Structured material that helps organisations review, explain and improve AI-enabled activity in operational context.

Related: Governance Evidence · Cortex Ledger

Governance

Governance intent

The policy, rule, expectation or control objective an organisation wants to apply to AI-enabled activity.

Related: Runtime Governance · Cortex Conduit

Platform

Governed AI operational infrastructure

A way of introducing AI into operational environments with operational context, runtime governance, evidence and accountability connected from the start.

Related: Cortex Platform

H

Governance

High-consequence environment

An operating environment where AI use may affect public accountability, regulated activity, operational resilience, security-sensitive work, infrastructure, customers, citizens or institutional trust.

Related: Government · Defence · Critical Infrastructure · Regulated Enterprise

I

Governance

Institutional accountability

The responsibility an organisation retains for AI-enabled activity, including how that activity is governed, reviewed, evidenced and explained.

Related: Governance Evidence · Runtime Governance

Architecture

Interoperability boundaries

The boundaries that govern how AI interacts with systems, tools, models, providers and operating environments.

Related: Interoperability Governance · Cortex Gate

Architecture

Interoperability boundary

A governed boundary where AI-enabled activity connects to a system, tool, data source, provider or operating environment.

Related: Cortex Gate · Interoperability Governance

O

Governance

Observability and traceability

The ability to make AI-enabled activity more visible, reviewable and connected to context and evidence.

Related: Observability & Traceability · Cortex Lens

Governance

Operational consequence

An awareness of what AI-enabled activity may affect downstream across people, processes, systems, data and dependencies.

Related: Critical Infrastructure

Governance

Operational context

A structured understanding of the people, processes, systems, data, infrastructure and dependencies affected by AI-enabled activity.

Related: Cortex Atlas · Operational Context Architecture

Governance

Operational dependency

A system, data source, supplier, process, team, tool or infrastructure component that AI-enabled activity may rely on or affect.

Related: Cortex Atlas · Operational Context Architecture

Assurance

Operational review

Review of AI-enabled activity in relation to the operational context, evidence, boundaries and accountability surrounding its use.

Related: Governance Evidence · Observability & Traceability

P

Platform

Provider abstraction

The ability to keep governance coherent as AI models, providers or services change, rather than binding governance to a single supplier choice.

Related: Cortex Bridge

Platform

Provider and runtime change

Changes in the model, provider, deployment route, runtime environment or service conditions involved in AI-enabled activity.

Related: Cortex Bridge · Sovereign Runtime Architecture

R

Assurance

Regulated AI operations

AI-enabled activity in environments where legal, regulatory, audit, assurance, privacy, security, conduct or accountability requirements affect how AI should be governed and reviewed.

Related: Regulated Enterprise · Assurance & Regulatory Alignment

Assurance

Reviewability

The ability to understand, examine and evidence AI-enabled activity after or during use in a way that supports governance, assurance or operational review.

Related: Governance Evidence · Cortex Ledger

Platform

Runtime abstraction

The ability to keep governance coherent across different runtime environments or deployment conditions.

Related: Cortex Bridge · Runtime Control Plane

Governance

Runtime activity

AI-enabled activity as it takes place in operational use, including the surrounding context, boundaries, evidence and accountability conditions.

Related: Runtime Governance · Runtime Control Plane

Governance

Runtime governance

Governance applied while AI-enabled activity is operating, not only before deployment, approval or retrospective review.

Related: Runtime Governance · Cortex Conduit

S

Architecture

Sovereign AI operations

AI-enabled activity in sensitive or controlled environments where jurisdiction, residency, continuity, evidence, accountability, dependency or institutional authority may matter.

Related: Sovereign Runtime Architecture · Federated Runtime Governance

Architecture

Sovereign runtime architecture

Framing how AI can be introduced into sensitive or controlled environments with context, runtime governance, evidence and accountability, where jurisdiction, residency and assurance matter.

Related: Sovereign Runtime Architecture

T

Platform

Thin-slice engagement

A bounded engagement focused on establishing operational context, governance and evidence in a real setting before AI scales.

Related: Contact

Use the same language across your teams.

The glossary gives policy, security, architecture, data, assurance and operations a common vocabulary for governed AI operations.