Nexus Standards · NS-12 · Proposed
NS-12
NS-12: Software, model and AI/ML artifacts (supply chain, model cards, dataset sheets)
NS-12 is a proposed Nexus Standard; the artifacts it governs are identified by UNIs (Unique Nexus Identifier). NS-12 governs software (SW, SV, MG, WF), models (MD) and AI/ML artifacts (datasets used for training and evaluation, evaluation records and agents): what each carries so that it can be identified, built reproducibly, attested, evaluated, governed and withdrawn, in any programming language, build system or runtime.
Summary
- Statusproposed
- Responsible scopesoftware, models and capability lifecycle; trust, authorization and assurance
- Identifier
NXS-STD-ST-000012 - Rules stated4
- Programme areas12
- Source filesrepository
Nexus Standards · proposed
Status of NS-12
Preparatory working draft, circulated for review and comment. Not for implementation. Prepared and circulated by The Secretariat of the Nexus Standards, Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI Canada) (public@therisk.global), 17 October 2026. Technical review area: TR-04. This document is not a Nexus Standard; it may change without notice and is not to be implemented, relied upon or cited as a Nexus Standard. Its stage is designated only by the Global Standards Council and its technical committees under NS-13. Recipients are invited to submit comments with supporting reasons, and to notify any patent rights of which they are aware. See the notice of circulation.
Electrified and connected activity in India
The map frames India as an example geography for the subject of NS-12; the frame gives context and is not a statement of where the standards apply. Shown at first: night-time lights, daily (VIIRS Black Marble, VNP46A2, NASA LAADS DAAC) and population density, 2020 (Gridded Population of the World v4.11, NASA SEDAC, CIESIN, Columbia University). The layer drawer adds true colour (VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance). NASA products are served through NASA GIBS under NASA's open data policy, with acknowledgement; population density is GPW v4.11 by CIESIN, Columbia University, under CC BY 4.0; coastlines, boundaries and place names come from NASA GIBS reference layers (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) and Natural Earth (public domain). Each layer shows its own observation date; full credits are given under the map.
The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.
Layers 2
Connected activity
Keyboard, with the map focused
Hold Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll to zoom
Latest available
NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Blue Marble (NASA) · © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Natural Earth
Loading the latest NASA imagery.
Drag to move. Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll, pinch or the buttons to zoom; hover for the values under the pointer; reset returns to the region.
Night-time lights and population density, the footprint of electrified, connected activity, framed on India.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place.
Data: NASA GIBS · ASTER GDEM · Blue Marble · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Natural EarthSources and licences
- We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- VIIRS Black Marble night-time lights, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; distributed by the NASA Level-1 and Atmosphere Archive and Distribution System (LAADS DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University. 2018. Gridded Population of the World, Version 4 (GPWv4): Population Density, Revision 11. NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). doi:10.7927/H49C6VHW. CC BY 4.0
- VIIRS near-real-time products (flood, land surface temperature, snow cover, corrected reflectance), NASA LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- ASTER GDEM is a product of METI and NASA (ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003, NASA LP DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). Cite as: NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Spacesystems and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team (2019). ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003. doi:10.5067/ASTER/ASTGTM.003. NASA open data
- Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Public domain
- © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via NASA GIBS (coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). ODbL
- Blue Marble, NASA Earth Observatory; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- Context on the globe and flat map: coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names from NASA GIBS reference layers (OpenStreetMap data, ODbL, © OpenStreetMap contributors); Blue Marble imagery as an optional base; 3D terrain and the elevation read-out from the ASTER GDEM elevation colour index (5 m to 200 m classes, exaggerated for legibility). Boundaries are drawn as published and imply no position on any territory.
- Globe: MapLibre GL JS 6.9.1, BSD-3-Clause, © MapLibre contributors.
- NASA GIBS: We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS).
- Optional layers (3 sources in the layer list: live, forecast, observed and context) print their provider credit on the map and here when switched on; forecasts are model output and derived indices are estimates.
Layers and dates
- Night-time lights, daily: VIIRS Black Marble (VNP46A2), NASA LAADS DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
- Population density, 2020: Population: CIESIN, Columbia University, Gridded Population of the World v4.11 (2018), NASA SEDAC, CC BY 4.0 · static
- True colour: VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026
NS-12 among the standards.
Fig.The standards on which NS-12 builds, those that cite it and the programme areas where it applies, from the texts and the registry.
The standard as a process
A release is built from a recorded source revision with a bill of materials, a build attestation and signatures; models carry a model card and datasets a sheet; agents act under recorded mandates; governance obligations are clauses bound to the model's context and evaluated before the versioned release. 8 operations in 5 phases; each states its actor, its decision rule, the record it leaves and the rule identifiers it implements (9 rules of NS-12 and the standards it applies). Records and artifacts are cited by UNI (Unique Nexus Identifier) and version.
All operations in order (8)
- 01
Source revision start · Source
The licence is stated in SPDX form and the legal state is recorded.
- Who
- the maintainers
- Decision rule
- every software artifact carries its UNI in source and metadata
- Record
- the source revision with the UNI in its header and codemeta.json
- Implements
- NS1-R5
- 02
Bill of materials record · Build
Every component of the release is listed with its version and licence.
- Who
- the build service
- Decision rule
- releases carry a bill of materials
- Record
- an SPDX or CycloneDX bill of materials with its digest
- Implements
- NS12-R1
- 03
Build attestation exercise · Build
The release artifacts are signed; the attestation states how they were built.
- Who
- the build service
- Decision rule
- releases carry a build attestation and signatures as evidence of the UNI version
- Record
- a build provenance attestation naming builder and source revision, and signatures
- Implements
- NS12-R1
- 04
Model card record · Documentation
Intended and out-of-scope use, data by UNI, metrics with evaluation records, limitations, uncertainty and licence are stated.
- Who
- the model developers
- Decision rule
- models carry a model card and datasets a sheet; both cite their sources by UNI
- Record
- a model card; a sheet for each training, validation and evaluation dataset
- Implements
- NS12-R2
- 05
Agent mandate step · Governance
Every artifact an agent produces credits it as an agent and names the mandate.
- Who
- the trust authority
- Decision rule
- agents act under recorded mandates and are credited as agents; they never adopt
- Record
- the agent catalogued as software with its mandate
- Implements
- NS12-R3
- 06
Governance clauses model · Governance
Risk management, transparency, human oversight, logging and incident reporting obligations cite their external source.
- Who
- the policy author
- Decision rule
- obligations are clauses bound to contextual UNIs and evaluated, never prose assurances
- Record
- AI governance obligations as clauses bound to the model's contextual UNI
- Implements
- NS12-R4, NS10-R4
- 07
Evaluate gate · Governance
Bills of materials, attestations, cards and clause results are evaluated before release.
- Who
- an evaluator with a mandate
- Decision rule
- evidence is evaluated outside the developer's trust boundary
- Record
- attestations for the release (NS-11)
- Implements
- NS11-R2
- 08
Versioned release end · Release
A recalled or withdrawn release keeps its record and states why.
- Who
- the publisher of record
- Decision rule
- versions share the UNI; a withdrawn release keeps its record
- Record
- the release as a new version of the UNI
- Implements
- NS1-R1, NS1-R3
Fig.Phases read left to right; each card names the operation, its actor and the record it leaves, and each edge label names the hand-over. Play, step or scrub; the detail panel gives the full text of the selected operation. Sources: NS-12: Software, model and AI/ML artifacts · NS-1: The UNI and the artifact catalog · NS-10: Policies and clauses · NS-11: Verification and monitoring.
NS-12 clause by clause
6 clauses and 4 rules as stated in the standard, presented with numbered clauses, stable rule anchors, versions and changes.
Software
Every software artifact carries: its UNI in the source header and in codemeta.json (CodeMeta 3.0); a software bill of materials per release, in SPDX (version 3.0, or version 2.2.1 as published in ISO/IEC 5962:2021) or CycloneDX (version 1.6, published as ECMA-424), with a digest; a build provenance attestation following SLSA build provenance in an in-toto attestation envelope, naming the builder and the source revision; signatures over the release artifacts; the licence as an SPDX identifier and the legal state; and the UNIs of the clauses it implements (NS-10). Releases are versions of the UNI; the bill of materials and the attestations are evidence (NS-11).
Models and scientific kernels
A model record (MD) carries a model card: intended use and out-of-scope use; training and evaluation datasets by UNI; metrics with their evaluation records; known limitations and failure modes; uncertainty behaviour; provenance of the training run; licence and legal state; and the claim ceiling. A scientific kernel records its golden-value tests by UNI. A model without a card is not catalogued as a model.
Datasets for machine learning
Training, validation and evaluation datasets carry a dataset sheet (motivation, composition, collection, preprocessing, uses, distribution, maintenance) and the NS-3b profile, with rights and consent states explicit. Metadata for machine-learning datasets follows the Croissant vocabulary (MLCommons) where it applies.
Agents
An agent is catalogued as software with a mandate (NS-11) that states what it may do, for whom and under which clauses. Every artifact an agent produces credits it as a creator of type Agent (NS-2) and names the mandate. Agents do not approve, adopt or certify.
Governance crosswalk
AI governance obligations (risk management, transparency, human oversight, logging, incident reporting) are expressed as clauses (NS-10) that cite their external source, are bound to the contextual UNI of the model or agent (NS-9) and are evaluated (NS-11). The crosswalk register (registry/external-standards.yaml) names the external standards and legal instruments; their text is not reproduced.
Rules
| Rule | Text |
|---|---|
| NS12-R1 | Each software release shall carry a bill of materials, a build attestation and signatures as evidence of the UNI version. |
| NS12-R2 | Each model shall carry a model card and each dataset a dataset sheet; both shall cite their sources by UNI. |
| NS12-R3 | Agents shall act under recorded mandates and shall be credited as agents; they shall not adopt or certify. |
| NS12-R4 | AI governance obligations shall be clauses bound to contextual UNIs and evaluated, not prose assurances. |
Changes between versions
One published version is available (0.1.0); a comparison between versions is shown once a second version is published.
Clause numbers follow the sections of the document; rule identifiers (NS12-R1, NS12-R2, NS12-R3…) are stable anchors. With script enabled, each clause and rule has a permalink and a machine-readable view (YAML and JSON), and the j and k keys move between clauses.
Programme areas that list NS-12
12 programme areas list NS-12.
- Information and cyber-physical hazard standardsTierHazard and threat familiesStatusplanned
- Frontier and exponential technology hazard standardsTierHazard and threat familiesStatusplanned
- Industry and manufacturingTierSectors and industriesStatusplanned
- Digital, telecom and platformsTierSectors and industriesStatusplanned
- Research, academia and educationTierSectors and industriesStatusplanned
- Software and supply chainTierCross-cutting capabilitiesStatusplanned
- AI, models and agentsTierCross-cutting capabilitiesStatusplanned
- Deployment servicesTierInfrastructure servicesStatusplanned
- Developers and APIsTierInfrastructure servicesStatusplanned
- Cyber and digital risk standardsTierHazard and threat familiesStatusplanned
- Frontier technology risk standardsTierHazard and threat familiesStatusplanned
- AI and autonomous systems risk standardsTierHazard and threat familiesStatusplanned
Recent research on NS-12
Recent peer-reviewed articles, preprints, datasets and reports on the subject of this standard, retrieved at the time of reading from open scholarly metadata services (OpenAlex, Crossref, DataCite, Zenodo, arXiv, Europe PMC, OpenAIRE Graph) with search terms composed from the registry. Each work is listed with its authors, venue, year, type, open-access status and licence, and links to its DOI or landing page. Sources not yet enabled for live display on this site are listed for reference and are not queried.
Search termssoftware bill of materials; SBOM; model cards; datasheets for datasets; software supply chain security; AI documentation; JSON Schema 2020-12; OpenAPI Specificationcombined with: software; machine learning; AI; supply chain; transparencyDerived from the subject of the standard and its rules, and the external standards of its crosswalk domains.
- OpenAlexlisted for reference; not queried
- Crossreflisted for reference; not queried
- DataCitelisted for reference; not queried
- Zenodolisted for reference; not queried
- arXivlisted for reference; not queried
- Europe PMClisted for reference; not queried
- OpenAIRE Graphlisted for reference; not queried
No source is enabled for live display on this site yet: the sources are listed for reference and none is queried. Once the publisher of record enables a source after its terms are reviewed, recent works are listed here. Metadata and links only: title, authors, venue, year, type, open-access status and licence as each source records them; works are listed for orientation, not reviewed or endorsed.
NS-12 in the standards repository
The text, schemas, machine-readable files, registry rows, tests and history behind NS-12, on the main branch of the canonical repository. Text, registry, schemas and catalog are CC BY 4.0; tools and tests are Apache-2.0.
Source text
| File | What it holds | Links |
|---|---|---|
standards/NS-12-software-models-and-ai.md | NXS-STD-ST-000012 | Raw · History · Suggest an edit |
standards/INDEX.md | status and document of every standard | History |
Machine-readable files
| File | What it holds | Links |
|---|---|---|
catalog/artifact-catalog.yaml | catalog records · 2 mentions | First mention, line 455 |
Registry rows
| File | What it holds | Links |
|---|---|---|
registry/ecosystem-coverage.yaml | Nexus ecosystem coverage register (programme B corpus read) · 78 rows or mentions | Line 86 |
registry/subsites.yaml | Nexus Standards subsites - the systemic architecture of nexustandards.com · 9 rows or mentions | Line 53 |
registry/open-standards-stack.yaml | Open-standards and open-source stack under the UNI · 2 rows or mentions | Line 71 |
registry/review-investigations.yaml | Circulation for technical review and comment, and the technical review areas · 2 rows or mentions | Line 78 |
Tests and validators
| File | What it holds | Links |
|---|---|---|
tools/validate.mjs | tool or validator | Line 150 |
Change history
| File | What it holds | Links |
|---|---|---|
| Commits to the text | every change to the text | · |
CHANGELOG.md | notable changes, by version | · |
release/manifest.json | release manifest with file digests | in-toto statement |
| Releases | tagged releases of the repository | · |
Propose a change
| File | What it holds | Links |
|---|---|---|
| Open a proposal on NS-12 | issue form: target, kind, rationale (NS-13) | Template |
| Issue form: comment | issue form | Template |
| Issue form: errata | issue form | Template |
| Issues that mention NS-12 | open and closed | · |
| Pull request template | what a change must carry: target, kind, rationale, validation | · |
CONTRIBUTING.md | pull requests, sign-off and checks | · |
GOVERNANCE.md | how registry codes and texts change | · |
How NS-12 is developed, and how to take part
NS-12 is developed in the open under NS-13 (the stages and gates of NS-13). Working groups draft, councils decide the reserved matters, and anyone may propose a change, comment, submit an implementation report, object or appeal, without membership or fee.
- Who decides what: the decision-rights matrix.
- The process: stages, gates, review windows and appeals.
- Open gateways and calls: how to propose, comment, join a working group or request activation.
- Develop a standard: the development track and the lifecycle of each standard.
- NS-13 in the canonical repository.
Relation to external standards
NS-12 relates to external standards by identifier, clause number and URL (NS14-R1), and directs the reader to the issuing body.
Recent research and sources
Peer-reviewed articles, preprints, reports and datasets on the subject of this standard, retrieved at the time of reading from open scholarly metadata services (OpenAlex and Crossref) and listed with authors, venue, year, type and access status, with a link to each work. Curated references and related standards are listed first; recent works matched by subject follow and are listed for orientation.
Curated references
- Sigstore: Software Signing for Everybody
ACM CCS 2022 · 2022 · Peer-reviewed - SoK: Taxonomy of Attacks on Open-Source Software Supply Chains
IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy · 2023 · Peer-reviewed - Reproducible Builds: Increasing the Integrity of Software Supply Chains
IEEE Software · 2022 · Peer-reviewed - NIST SP 800-161 Rev. 1 Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk Management Practices
NIST · 2022 · Official publication - Model Cards for Model Reporting
ACM FAT* 2019 · 2019 · Peer-reviewed - Datasheets for datasets
Communications of the ACM · 2021 · Peer-reviewed - Closing the AI accountability gap
ACM FAT* 2020 · 2020 · Peer-reviewed - Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework (AI RMF 1.0)
NIST · 2023 · Official publication
Related standards and frameworks
- SPDX (System Package Data Exchange) specification; ISO/IEC 5962:2021
SPDX project (Linux Foundation); ISO/IEC JTC 1 - CycloneDX Bill of Materials specification (ECMA-424)
OWASP CycloneDX; Ecma International TC54 - OpenSSF Best Practices Badge
OpenSSF - OpenAPI Specification
OpenAPI Initiative (Linux Foundation) - NIST AI 600-1 Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework: Generative Artificial Intelligence Profile
NIST - CodeMeta software metadata vocabulary
CodeMeta project - ISO/IEC 23894:2023 Information technology - Artificial intelligence - Guidance on risk management
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 42 - NIST AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF 1.0, NIST AI 100-1)
NIST
Search terms, derived from the subject of the standard and its rules: software bill of materials; SBOM; model cards; datasheets for datasets; software supply chain security; AI documentation; combined with: software; machine learning; AI; supply chain; transparency. With JavaScript enabled, recent works matching these terms are listed from OpenAlex and Crossref.
Risk Academy courses and disciplines
1 course and 3 disciplines of Risk Academy (risksacademy.com) that teach the knowledge and methods of NS-12. Each course lists its level, stream and learning hours.
Courses
Disciplines
The correspondence between courses, disciplines and the Nexus Standards is maintained with Risk Academy and is subject to its academic review.
Programmes, tracks and courses for this standard
GCRI Canada, The Global Risks Forum (GRF), The Global Risks Alliance (GRA) and Risk Academy work on the subject of NS-12 in distinct roles (research and evidence; governance, policy and convening; capital, finance and markets; education and training). Each entry states why it corresponds and the step it offers; each institution sets its own terms of participation.
Research and evidence
GCRI Canada
Research programmes that produce the observations, models and assessments these records describe.
Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous SystemsStudies model evaluation.Apply to this programme Cybersecurity and Digital ResilienceStudies software supply-chain security.Apply to this programme therisk.globalAll programmes of GCRI CanadaGovernance, policy and convening
The Global Risks Forum (GRF)
Tracks that convene public authorities, researchers and institutions on the governance of shared risks.
AI and Digital GovernanceExamines AI oversight and accountability.Join this track globalriskforum.comAll tracks of The Global Risks ForumCapital, finance and markets
The Global Risks Alliance (GRA)
Industry programmes in which financial institutions build a shared understanding of systemic risk.
AI and Financial Model RiskWorks on model risk governance.Join this programme globalriskalliance.comAll programmes of The Global Risks AllianceEducation and training
Risk Academy
Courses and disciplines that teach the knowledge and methods practitioners need to apply these standards.
Technology and DataRAT-204 · Intermediate · 19 learning hoursManaging risk data, AI, digital infrastructure and technology risk responsiblyTake this course All courses and disciplinesListed in the education and training section of this pageQuestions and answers.
What is the status of NS-12?
What does applying NS-12 establish?
How is a change to NS-12 proposed?
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The same subject across the Consortium.
- GCRI Canadatherisk.globalSupply chain securityMethods, data and models
- GRFglobalriskforum.comCorporate and Supply Chain GovernanceMandates, commitments and accountability
- GRAglobalriskalliance.comDigital supply chainsExposure, loss and capital
- Risk Academyrisksacademy.comRisk data governance, provenance and licensingWhere it is taught
- Nexus Reportstherisk.globalTrade and Strategic Resources in Nexus ReportsWhere it is reported
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Status and use. The Nexus Standards are proposed standards developed through an open process under NS-13 and published for voluntary use; they do not constitute certification, accreditation or regulatory approval, and adoption remains a decision of the Global Standards Council and, in each country, of its National Standards Council. A UNI (Unique Nexus Identifier) identifies an artifact; it does not certify it. Names of standards bodies and their standards belong to their stewards and are used only to identify the documents; no text of an external standard is reproduced here. Nexus Standards is not affiliated with, endorsed by or certified by any standards body named here.
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