In the PMI-CPMAI perspective on responsible AI and data governance, regulatory compliance starts with knowing exactly what data you have and how sensitive it is. Before you can design controls, encryption schemes, or risk plans, you must first perform a data audit and classification to identify personal, sensitive, and regulated data elements, as well as their sources, flows, and storage locations. This aligns with the guidance that early in the AI lifecycle, project teams should create a clear data inventory and mapping to understand which datasets fall under privacy regulations (such as health, financial, or personally identifiable information).

By conducting a thorough data audit to identify sensitive information, the project team can determine which regulations apply, what consent or legal basis is required, and where to apply specific safeguards (access controls, anonymization, retention limits, etc.). Encryption and broader risk management plans are important, but they are secondary steps that rely on the foundational insight gained from the audit. Verbal commitments from stakeholders have no formal regulatory standing. Therefore, in the initial stages of data collection and aggregation, the task that most directly supports regulatory compliance is a thorough data audit to identify sensitive information.