A term is owned by the chapter that first defines it, and a later chapter may use it freely but may not redefine it. These definitions are the ones the continuity ledger records, which is the same record the continuity gate checks every chapter against.

Access price Chapter 1

The stated amount an organization pays for the right to use an AI capability, usually per seat or subscription. It does not include additional costs based on how much AI the organization actually uses.

Category error Chapter 1

The error of managing a metered resource as if it were licensed software. It rests on a false assumption: that the access price fixes the total cost. The tool is the right one and the vendor is not at fault. The economic model applied to the tool is wrong.

Consumption event Chapter 1

A single use of an AI system that consumes metered computing resources and creates an underlying cost greater than zero, whether or not the buyer is charged for it separately. A consumption event may be measured in tokens, requests, credits, compute time, or another equivalent unit. It is the basic unit of consumption tracked in AI Operations Management.

Flat-rate objection Chapter 1

The claim that a flat per-seat price makes AI equivalent to licensed software; answered by meter relocation.

Meter relocation Chapter 1

The placement of consumption metering on the provider’s side of a flat-rate subscription. The buyer pays a fixed price for access, while the provider continues to measure actual use. The provider sets the flat rate based on expected consumption and may change the price, allowance, or usage limits when actual consumption exceeds that expectation.

Metered resource Chapter 1

A resource whose consumption is measured per unit of use, here in tokens or their equivalents.

Resource consumption model Chapter 1

The economic model in which deployed AI is consumed as a metered resource. Each use creates a consumption event, and cost accrues with each event. It contrasts with the software access model.

Software access model Chapter 1

A purchasing model in which an organization pays a fixed price for access to software, usually per seat or subscription. Because additional use creates little or no additional cost, the organization manages who has access rather than how much of the software each user consumes.