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Cheatsheet — AI Collaboration Modes

Source: Collaboration Modes

The 5 Modes

Mode Name Who decides Typical application
1 Human only Human Creative or ethical judgements
2 AI advises Human (after AI input) Analyses, summaries, options
3 AI proposes, human approves Human (final click) Document generation, emails, reports
4 AI acts, human monitors AI (human intervenes) Automated processing, routine tasks
5 AI fully autonomous AI Fully automated pipelines

When to Use Which Level?

Question 1: What are the consequences if the AI is wrong?
  → Large / irreversible?  → Mode 1 or 2
  → Small / recoverable?   → Mode 3, 4 or 5

Question 2: Is the task standardised and repetitive?
  → No   → Mode 1 or 2
  → Yes  → Consider Mode 3 or 4

Question 3: Is it a High Risk system (EU AI Act)?
  → Yes  → Mode 1, 2 or 3 (human oversight mandatory)
  → No   → Mode 4 or 5 possible

Escalation Rules

Situation Action
Unexpected output Switch back to lower mode
Quality degradation detected Review mode; consider human intervention
New use outside scope Reassess mode; document in charter
Complaint or incident At least Mode 3 until cause identified

Governance Requirements per Mode

Mode Logging Human review Guardian sign-off
1–2 Recommended Per decision Not required
3 Mandatory Sample (10%) At implementation
4 Mandatory Alert-based Required
5 Mandatory + audit trail Periodic (monthly) Required + recertification

Source: Collaboration Modes | AI Safety Checklist