Executive summary
Regulated organizations evaluating AI governance platforms need more than license quotes — they need defensible multi-year TCO models that include infrastructure, implementation, operations, support, training, compliance overhead, and quantified savings. This framework standardizes how WAIG Foundation and partners model investments across the WAIG assurance platform.
TCO cost categories
Every WAIG platform TCO model uses eight categories: (1) Licensing & subscriptions, (2) Infrastructure & GPU, (3) Implementation — one-time, (4) Operations & FTE, (5) Support & maintenance, (6) Training & enablement, (7) Compliance & audit overhead, and (8) Annual savings / benefits. Year 2+ costs apply an escalation factor (typically 3–4%) to recurring categories.
AI Testing Lab
Key cost drivers include adversarial test catalog maintenance, red-team staffing, and continuous monitoring infrastructure. Savings typically come from reduced incident response cost, faster model validation cycles, and avoided regulatory penalties.
Governance Validation Tool
Models emphasize audit prep reduction, control mapping automation, evidence lineage, and continuous compliance versus point-in-time assessments. Implementation costs reflect framework mapping, connector integration, and SSO.
GTaaS (Governance Testing as a Service)
API-first governance gates in MLOps pipelines reduce rework by catching policy violations before production. TCO models include CI/CD integration, policy-as-code maintenance, and GRC–engineering collaboration overhead.
3-year vs 5-year horizons
Three-year models suit POC-to-production and single-department rollouts. Five-year models are required for cabinet, board, and regulator submissions where sustainment, infrastructure refresh, and license renewal must be explicit. Net TCO = total cost minus cumulative savings; payback is calculated when cumulative savings exceed cumulative cost.
Using the interactive calculator
The public TCO calculator at /tco provides platform-specific defaults refined from deployment experience. Adjust inputs for your scale, then request a consultant-led analysis for board-ready packaging, vendor comparison, and sensitivity analysis.