AI that assists versus AI that decides

An operational design distinction: AI may decide autonomously when the decision is structured, reversible and auditable; it assists but does not decide where expert judgement, ambiguity or hard-to-reverse impact exist, in which case the design defines what information the accountable person receives.

The three requirements for deciding alone — structured, reversible and with sufficient data — are cumulative. One missing is enough to make the right design the model proposing and a person confirming.