Discovery Phase
The discovery phase is the first stage of an AI engagement, in which scope, data, workflows, success criteria, and constraints are mapped before any system is built.
What is Discovery Phase?
A typical discovery phase runs 1-2 weeks. Activities include stakeholder interviews, data inventory and quality review, current-state workflow mapping, regulatory and risk classification, success metric definition, and a build-or-buy recommendation. The output is a written scope and a go/no-go decision. Skipping discovery is the most reliable way to ship an AI system that solves the wrong problem.
How does Discovery Phase apply to enterprise AI?
Every Impetora engagement begins with discovery. The same artefacts double as the documentation regulators expect under the EU AI Act conformity assessment.
Related terms
- TRACE Methodology - TRACE is Impetora's four-pillar methodology for delivering enterprise AI in regulated industries: Trust, Readiness, Architecture, Citations.
- Pilot Phase - The pilot phase is the staged build of a working AI system on a narrow, real workflow with real data, evaluated against success criteria agreed in discovery.
- Impact Assessment - An impact assessment is a structured analysis of the potential effects an AI system could have on individuals, groups, and processes before it is deployed.
- Build vs Buy AI - Build vs buy is the strategic decision between developing an AI capability internally or in partnership, versus licensing a finished product from a vendor.
External references
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