The New Compliance Questions Your GPT Vendor Should Answer

Let’s be honest, most teams didn’t choose their GPT tool because of its privacy settings or regulatory roadmap. They chose it because it worked, it was easy, and it promised to make things faster. But as generative AI becomes more deeply embedded in the workplace, those quick wins are starting to come with bigger risks. Suddenly, questions are being asked by legal, by IT, by compliance, even by the board. And if your GPT vendor can’t give a straight answer, you might be left holding the bag.

This shift isn’t just about laws catching up to the technology. It’s about making sure the tools you bring into your company are actually built for enterprise use. Not just with shiny features and nice UX, but with the kind of compliance guardrails that protect your employees, your customers, and your reputation. Because when a tool makes decisions, stores data, and learns from your inputs, it’s no longer “just a product.” It’s a risk surface. And it’s your job to make sure it’s a responsible one.

You’re Not Buying a Tool, You’re Buying a Risk Profile

When you integrate a GPT into your workflow, whether it’s for customer support, internal documentation, HR onboarding, or anything else, you’re not just buying a piece of software. You’re buying a set of assumptions about how that tool collects data, uses it, stores it, and shares it. And here’s the thing: most vendors aren’t very transparent about what those assumptions are.

Some might bury them in a whitepaper. Others might skip them entirely and focus on capabilities instead. But from a legal or compliance standpoint, “it works great” doesn’t cut it. You need to understand what’s happening behind the scenes. What kind of logging is done? Are conversations used to train other models? Can employees request their data to be deleted from the system? Are there options to restrict inputs based on role or sensitivity? These aren’t bonus features. These are the new requirements.

And yet, many companies are walking into AI adoption without a clear protocol for evaluating vendors. That’s a problem. Because if you’re not asking the right questions now, you’ll be scrambling when regulators, employees, or even your own leadership start asking them later.

The Questions Your Vendor Should Be Ready to Answer

Let’s get specific. These aren’t hypotheticals; they’re the questions forward-looking legal and compliance teams are already using to pressure-test AI vendors. And if your current vendor hesitates or talks around them, it’s a red flag.

Start with data handling. Where is the data stored? How long is it retained? Is it used for further model training or analysis? Can you opt out of that? What controls are in place to prevent inadvertent exposure of sensitive information? Ask about access controls and audit trails. Who at the vendor has access to your data, and under what conditions? Can your internal security team run a test or audit?

Then move into governance. What happens when the model gives biased or inappropriate responses? Does the vendor have red-teaming processes in place? How often are those tested? What policies exist for retraining or updating models? Is there a roadmap to support compliance with specific laws, like the EU AI Act or U.S. state privacy laws? And finally, ask what your responsibilities are. If they can’t tell you what your team needs to do to stay compliant, they’re not a real partner.

These conversations don’t need to be adversarial, but they do need to be rigorous. Because the vendors who build for consumer use aren’t necessarily ready for enterprise-grade compliance. And once your company starts depending on a tool, it becomes a lot harder to switch.

Compliance Isn’t a Checkbox, It’s a Conversation

Too often, we treat compliance like a hurdle to clear instead of what it actually is: a shared agreement about how risk will be handled. That agreement can’t exist if your vendor keeps you in the dark. It also can’t exist if your internal teams aren’t aligned. Legal might be asking one set of questions, while product or marketing is racing ahead with deployment.

This is why leading companies are developing vendor vetting playbooks tailored to AI. It’s not just about having a policy on file; it’s about having a process in place. A repeatable way to evaluate, compare, and approve GPT tools before they’re embedded into key operations. Without that process, you’re not just exposed to compliance issues. You’re exposed to reputational fallout, employee trust breakdowns, and costly missteps that could’ve been prevented.

At The AI Shift, we help teams close that gap. Our approach isn’t about fearmongering. It’s about getting practical, fast. We work with legal, HR, and technical leaders to ask smarter questions, build better approval workflows, and actually get ahead of the AI curve instead of just reacting to it.

Ready to Start Asking Smarter Questions?

If your GPT vendor doesn’t have good answers, it’s time to get help. The AI Shift works with legal, compliance, and tech teams to create real-world vetting frameworks, so you can stop guessing and start making decisions with confidence.

We’ll help you develop AI review processes, assess third-party tools, and build the right questions into your procurement workflows. Because your team shouldn’t have to become AI auditors overnight, but you do need a partner who can guide you through the risks you’re inheriting.

Let’s talk about what your vendor should be answering—before it’s too late.
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