Independent AI Assurance

Prove your AI works. Then prove it to a regulator.

Evaluation harnesses, independent model risk validation, and fractional AI leadership for banks, insurers, and health plans. Deep technical assurance built by practitioners who ship production AI systems.

Aligned to Fed SR 26-2, the NAIC AI Model Bulletin, and NYDFS Circular Letter No. 7.

Independent of your model developers Examiner-ready evidence files Ph.D.-level quantitative expertise Fixed-fee, defined scope
Why now

Most teams shipping AI cannot prove it works, and the rules just changed.

The market is loud and largely unproven, and few organizations can demonstrate their systems perform as claimed. The first federal model-risk guidance for this era landed in April 2026. That gap defines the practice.

94%
of companies report no significant earnings impact from AI.
McKinsey, Aug 2026, n=1,719
~130
of thousands of vendors claiming agentic AI are genuinely capable, a 95 percent posturing rate.
Gartner
21%
have mature AI agent governance, while 75 percent plan to deploy agents within two years.
Deloitte, n=3,235
SR 26-2
Federal model-risk guidance landed April 2026. Every US bank is re-papering its model inventory now.
Federal Reserve
Services

Three ways in. One destination.

A low-risk entry point, a signature offering few firms deliver well, and a recurring seat at the table. Every engagement is fixed-fee with a defined scope.

Step 1 · Front door

AI Opportunity Assessment

Low risk, high signal

Stakeholder interviews, a data and systems inventory, and a prioritized use-case roadmap with cost and benefit estimated for each use case. You finish knowing where AI pays off and where it will not.

Timeline2 to 3 weeks
EngagementFixed fee
Step 3 · Destination

Fractional AI Lead

The seat at the table

One to two days a week covering architecture decisions, vendor evaluation, hiring support, roadmap, and code review. Senior AI judgment before you can justify a full-time hire. Retained with a 3 to 6 month floor.

CadenceMonthly
Floor3 to 6 months

Also available on request: AI System Audits and Second Opinions, Independent Model Risk Validation (SR 26-2 and NAIC), RAG and agentic system builds, and team enablement workshops.

Approach

Why independent, and why it holds up.

Regulators require that whoever validates a model is independent of whoever built it. That requirement is written into the regulation itself. Here is what the discipline looks like in practice.

Independent by design

We do not build your model and then grade our own work. The value is an arm's-length assessment a regulator will accept.

Reproducible evidence

Every claim is backed by a reproducible test, a documented limitation, and an examiner-ready evidence file built to survive scrutiny.

Technical depth

Ph.D.-level quantitative and causal-inference training aimed at the questions non-experts cannot assess, where quality in an AI system actually lives.

The evaluation infrastructure that proves whether your AI system actually works, documented to withstand regulatory examination.
The positioning this practice is built to own. Building AI systems has become common. Proving they work under examination remains rare.
The practice at a glance
Strategic Data Solutions LLC
  • Ph.D.-level quantitative and causal-inference expertise applied to AI evaluation.
  • Evaluation harnesses and agentic reliability systems built for production workloads.
  • Focused on regulated buyers: banks, insurers, and health plans under SR 26-2, NAIC, and NYDFS.
  • Based in Rochester, NY, serving clients nationally.
About

Assurance you can put in front of an examiner.

Many AI advisors sell strategy and deliver a slide deck. This practice ships the infrastructure that proves a system works and holds up under a regulator's questions, which is the part few firms can actually do.

The buyers who matter cannot self-serve and cannot afford to be wrong. They need assurance that is independent, technical, and accountable. That is the reason this practice exists.

Get in touch

Find out whether your AI actually works.

Start with a paid AI Opportunity Assessment: low risk, defined scope, and a clear view of where AI pays off. Or send a short description of the problem you are facing.