Source: AI Governance, Ethics and Leadership
As AI vendors embed governance frameworks and ethics commitments into their products and marketing, they capture regulatory goodwill and competitive differentiation. The actual risk mitigation lands on customers, who implement safeguards, conduct audits, and bear liability for misuse. This inverts the typical product safety model, where manufacturers absorb compliance costs. "Responsible AI" functions as a cost transfer mechanism. Without mandatory third-party certification or liability caps tied to vendor compliance levels, governance theater remains cheaper than genuine accountability.