An honest AI policy: trust as part of the product

Practicum for Book 3, The Economics of Trust (the Creation house). Version: 2026-07. Time: 20 to 30 minutes. A one-page worksheet for an independent professional or small business. You will leave with a short statement you can show a client without embarrassment.

Clients increasingly want to know where you use AI, where a person stays involved, and who takes responsibility when the machine gets something wrong. Silence can look like concealment. An honest AI policy is not a legal document. It answers the client's questions before they have to ask. People pay a premium for honesty, not for a business that pretends to be either "fully human" or "fully AI."

Part 1. Where we use AI and where a person takes over

Review your services and mark each one honestly:

What we do	AI works on its own	AI works under human review	A person does the work
`______________`
`______________`
`______________`

Rule: the higher the cost of an error for the client, the farther right you should move. A person must stay responsible when the work affects money, health, legal rights, or an irreversible decision.

Part 2. Who takes responsibility for an error?

Write one sentence a client can understand without a lawyer:

The person responsible for the result is: __________ (a name or role, not "the system").
If AI makes an error, the client should do this, and we will do this: __________________
The client can reach a person here, without fighting the bot: __________________

Easy access to a person is a product feature, not overhead. It matters even more when every competitor sends clients to a bot.

Part 3. Set a boundary: who are you not right for?

Trust grows when you say clearly who you cannot help and what you will not do. A boundary does not drive away the right clients. It helps them see that you are not promising everything to everyone.

We do not take on: __________________
We are not a good fit if the client needs: __________________
We will not compromise these principles: __________________

A boundary filters out poor fits and makes your offer easier to trust for the people you can help. "We are not for everyone" is more honest than "we serve everyone."

Part 4. Put it into one paragraph

Combine your answers into a short statement for your website, profile, or offer:

"We use AI for ___ so we can work faster and at lower cost. A person always takes part in ___ because an error there would be expensive. ___ is responsible for the result. If something goes wrong, email or call ___, and a person will review it. We do not take on ___; another provider will be a better fit for that work."

This is your honest AI policy. Update it whenever you change what you hand over to a machine.

Related worksheets: Trust footprint map and Trust compass. Volume voice: clients pay a premium for work they can verify and for people who speak honestly, not loudly.