What is an AI Acceptable Use Policy?

As AI tools move from novelty to core infrastructure, organizations need explicit rules for how employees and customers may use them, not because the underlying model is inherently risky, but because misuse (feeding regulated data into a public tool, generating deceptive content, bypassing safety controls) creates real legal and reputational exposure. An acceptable use policy names the specific prohibited categories: no submission of protected health information to a non-compliant provider, no generation of content violating intellectual property, no attempts to jailbreak safety guardrails. A usable policy is enforceable, not just aspirational: it maps to actual technical controls, like vendor allowlists or automated content filters, rather than relying purely on employees reading and remembering a document. It also typically defines an escalation path for edge cases and periodic review since AI capabilities and associated risks change quickly.