AI self-assessment guide: Helping businesses assess AI compliance, IP protection and risk

Intellectual property

AI self-assessment guide: Helping businesses assess AI compliance, IP protection and risk

• 27 May 2026

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As AI becomes part of everyday business operations, adoption often moves faster than governance. For many SMEs, AI tools are introduced informally and across teams without a clear strategy, shared oversight or internal rules, leaving them exposed to legal and operational risks.

At the same time, AI regulation is evolving rapidly and unevenly across jurisdictions. For SMEs - typically without in-house legal or compliance teams - this makes it difficult to know where to start or what responsible AI adoption looks like in practice.

This ICC guide bridges this gap by translating legal and technical considerations into a structured self-assessment framework focusing on regulatory compliance, intellectual property (IP) protection and risk management.

Who is the ICC AI self-assessment guide for?

The guide is relevant for businesses that:

1. Use off-the-shelf AI tools;
2. Develop or configure AI systems internally.

While primarily SME-focused, the guide can also be used by larger organisations as a practical internal awareness or training resource. However, it does not constitute a comprehensive legal assessment of compliance with AI-related obligations.

How can the ICC AI self-assessment guide help your business use AI with confidence?

The guide helps you:

• Evaluate the AI use of your business by asking the right questions;
• Prompt the adoption of internal policies and safeguards to mitigate legal and operational risks;
• Build confidence in adopting and using AI; and
• Increases overall AI readiness across core business functions, enabling SMEs to better leverage the technology's potential.

How does the ICC AI self-assessment guide work?

The guide provides a question-based, step-by-step self-assessment. It prompts businesses to:

• Clarify their role in relation to AI (user, developer or both);
• Work through targeted questions covering key business risks, including contracts, IP and training data, data protection, confidential business information, governance and internal processes;
• Identify potential gaps, with clear and actionable recommendations; and
• Access supporting materials, including explanations, a glossary and optional advanced checks.