AI / business models
Four gates before an AI business works
The model is only the first gate. The buyer pays for accountable outcomes.
30% more releases.
The study estimate separates generated activity from shipped output.
Four gates before an AI business works: can it perform, access the right records, act under authority and improve accepted buyer outcomes?
The software-work evidence separates generated activity from delivered releases. The article uses that distinction to test four commercial gates: capability, data, authority and buyer economics.
The four gates are an editorial framework, not a measured law. Incumbent platforms already provide many governance, connector, identity and audit features, so a new horizontal supplier has to prove value after integration costs.
Source and status. AU evidence companion, 11 October 2026. Framework adapted from author-supplied AI Opportunity Gates 2026-2035; independent anchors include NBER, METR, NIST and Microsoft documentation. Visual version 1, 1 October 2026.