What is an AI use case registry and why every enterprise needs it?

When it comes to using AI in business, what you don’t know can definitely harm your organization.

In large enterprise companies, like telecoms or financial institutions, AI is usually adopted in silos - within business units or teams that want to improve efficiency in their own work. But without a shared system that shows who is using what and for what purpose, AI can create serious security risks for the business.

This is exactly where the biggest challenge lies for CISOs and General Counsels - the lack of visibility into how AI is being used in their organization.

Let’s first look at what happens when there is no visibility into AI usage:

• Confidential business data can be put at risk because it’s unclear who is using which AI tool
• The company can be exposed to legal issues if the AI tools are not compliant with AI regulations - and employees don’t even know it
• Time is wasted when employees use different AI tools to solve the same problem

In short - problems. You can’t govern what you can’t see, right? As well as you can’t defend what you didn’t know existed.

On the other hand, organizations that focus more on visibility and build clear processes through an AI use case registry, a system that gives full control over AI usage, gain many benefits such as:

1. Early detection of potential AI problems, before they become real issues
2. Better control over sensitive information and who has access to it
3. Easier sharing of AI tools between teams, so everyone can use the same solution and save time on procurement

All of this won’t slow down innovation. In fact, it will build a stronger foundation that allows the organization to adopt AI faster and more safely.

The good news? AI governance doesn’t have to be complicated, especially if it’s done right from day one.

Let’s see what that looks like in practice.

Through conversations with enterprise companies, we often hear:

“AI tools are easily available to employees, and even if we block them on work devices, they can still use them on their personal ones. We know they’ll use them, and we can’t stop it.”

And that’s a fair point.

There’s no sense in banning employees from using AI tools that have become part of everyday life and help many of them with daily work tasks.

However, business leaders can offer approved AI tools to their employees and encourage AI usage in a safer, more controlled way. This is a much better option, because the tools will go through proper assessments, and key people - like the CISO and General Counsel - will be informed and involved.

This is exactly where an AI use case registry is extremely helpful.

It gives CISOs and General Counsels a way to be involved in AI usage from the beginning, before any problems appear.

The AI use case registry helps in the following ways:

1. Supports responsible AI usage from the start – teams know what to expect and which AI tools they should use in their daily work
2. Enables safe AI usage – all tools are in one place, from low-risk systems to high-risk ones that need more attention. It also allows a detailed understanding of each tool
3. Keeps all stakeholders involved – through shared collaboration, security, legal, compliance, and business teams can work together and understand which AI tools are being used and why
4. Simplifies AI oversight – no need to create a new process for every new tool. Everything can be tracked through a standard overview, saving time and improving efficiency

In short, this kind of approach turns AI governance from reactive to proactive, which allows enterprise companies to adopt AI faster without slowing down innovation.

The use of standardized principles when evaluating and monitoring AI is also very important. Let’s talk about that next.

Let’s be honest - most enterprises don’t have the time, resources, or internal alignment to manually track every AI project. Even with the best intentions, spreadsheets get messy, forms go unused, and visibility fades.

On the other hand, building an AI use case registry from scratch sounds like a massive project - especially for legal and security teams already stretched thin.

At TrustPath, we help you standardize the way you capture and manage AI use cases, so you can bring structure and clarity to a fast-moving space such as AI, without adding complexity.

Our platform allows you to have a consistent view of:

• The status of every use case - whether it’s in development, active, or under review
• The category of AI (like generative or predictive) and what it’s used for
• The departments and vendors involved
• The risks or regulatory concerns that need to be flagged
• Whether a use case has been assessed, approved, or needs further review

No more ad hoc forms or scattered documentation. Everyone follows the same structure, company-wide.

This gives legal and security teams the confidence to:

• Assess potential risks - see where AI is being deployed and where it might cause risk
• Be audit-ready all the time - respond quickly to regulatory inquiries
• Adopt the highest AI regulatory standards without sacrificing innovation - help the business move faster, knowing AI use is in line with AI regulations

And the best part? You don’t need to start from scratch. We give you a ready-to-use, best-practice framework that adapts to your policies and workflows.

Want to learn more about TrustPath’s AI use case registry? Get in touch or schedule your demo today.