Final Authority in AI Governance: Frontier-Provider Sovereignty and Action-Centered Deployer Governance

Jul 16, 2026

A new preprint examines where final authority should reside in AI governance as advanced systems are integrated into organizational workflows. It contrasts two models: frontier-provider sovereignty, which privileges the most capable model providers, and action-centered deployer sovereignty, which places authority with the organization deploying and bearing the consequences of AI actions. Through comparative analysis of frameworks such as the EU AI Act and NIST AI RMF, the paper finds stronger support for distributed operational accountability and argues that final authority over enterprise actions should rest with deployers rather than providers.

Why it matters: This work challenges the dominant provider-centric approach in AI governance, highlighting the need for deployer-centric models as AI becomes more embedded in real-world operations.

Full story at: arXiv AI/ML ↗