Autodesk’s Trusted AI program defines the principles, governance, and transparency practices that protect customer data while enabling AI features across architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, and media and entertainment. The program is built on five Trust Principles for AI, independently validated through ISO/IEC 42001 certification, and supported by AI Transparency Cards that give customers a clear view of how each feature works. Autodesk software helps design and make the buildings we live in, the cars we drive, and the infrastructure of entire cities. With that impact comes a responsibility to build AI people can understand and trust. When AI moves from the digital world to the physical one, that trust matters more. But how can we expect customers to trust us if the details aren’t readily accessible or if they don’t know what’s happening to their data? That tension shows up across the industries we serve: 98% of Design and Make leaders use at least one AI tool, but 60% say security is their biggest concern about AI adoption (State of Design and Make Report, 2026). Our customers want capability. They also want straight answers about how it works.
What is Autodesk’s definition of Trusted AI?
Trusted AI at Autodesk means AI designed, developed, and deployed to prioritize customer workflows while protecting customer data. As Autodesk’s Chief Trust Officer, my job is to let our AI capabilities deliver real value without compromising privacy or intellectual property. To do that, we established five Trust Principles for AI at Autodesk: responsibility, transparency, reliability, safety and security, and accountability – that sit alongside privacy principles and security standards. These principles guide every stage of AI development at Autodesk, from how models are designed and evaluated to how customer data is handled and protected.
How is Autodesk’s AI governance validated?
Autodesk’s AI development platform is certified to ISO/IEC 42001, the first global standard for AI management systems. Before any new AI capability reaches customers, cross-functional teams from engineering, security, privacy, legal, compliance, and product evaluate it for data integrity, privacy requirements, model performance, and potential risks. The certification requires controls across risk management, accountability structures, and lifecycle oversight from design to deployment. It also mandates continuous monitoring and improvement of AI systems. We also work with global initiatives – the EU AI Pact, the AI Verify Foundation, and the NIST AI Safety Institute Consortium – to help shape emerging AI practices and learn from organizations facing the same challenges.
How does Autodesk protect customer data in AI features?
Autodesk draws on synthetic, licensed, open-source, and internal data to power AI features. For certain AI features, training datasets include elements of customer content in aggregated and de-identified form – limited to common elements, industry standards, or other non-sensitive information. Many Autodesk AI features use proprietary models developed by Autodesk. These models are held to the same governance and compliance standards as the rest of our software, and tested rigorously for security, consistency, and accuracy. Others use third-party AI models, which we evaluate for risk and hold to our privacy principles and security standards. We do not share customer data with third parties for their own model training. Where we’re authorized to use data to improve our own models, we apply safeguards suited to the data and its intended use, including data minimization, filtering, access controls, secure processing environments, and, where required, anonymization or pseudonymization. To make this information accessible, we created the AI transparency cards.
How can customers view AI Transparency Cards?
Fusion AutoConstrain and Forma Construction IQ AI transparency cards.
AI Transparency Cards are available on the Autodesk Trust Center. Modeled after nutrition labels, the cards explain what the feature does, the models behind it, how it was trained, the protections in place, and its limitations. But information alone isn’t enough. Just as people learned to read nutrition labels, people need education around AI. That’s why we published an e-book on Autodesk’s Trusted AI practices and have a dedicated Customer Trust team to answer questions and support our customers. We’ve gathered customer feedback on the first iteration of the cards to understand what could be improved. Our research showed that customers were 3.3x more likely to use Autodesk AI features and 6.2x more likely to share data to improve AI features, after seeing the AI Transparency cards. These results were published in the Harvard Business Review, and an updated version of the cards is planned for September 2026.
How does Trusted AI apply across Design & Make industries?
Use cases and risks vary by industry, which is why trust can’t be one-size-fits –all. Our governance process evaluates each AI capability against the context in which it will be used. In architecture, engineering, and construction, it helps teams analyze environmental impacts and automate documentation. For manufacturers, it speeds product development and automates repetitive design work, freeing engineers to explore more design possibilities. In media and entertainment, it cuts the technical workload so artists can focus on storytelling and creative expression. The conversation about AI is shifting from what technology can do to whether people can trust how it is built and used. For me, that trust has to be earned: in the decisions we make, the safeguards we put in place, and the information we give our customers.
