Answer: The model subscription is usually only one part of cost. A useful construction AI budget includes seats, API usage, integration, automation, data, monitoring, human review, maintenance, governance and failure/recovery.

What this means in practice

Software Subscriptions

Seat-based assistants and AI features in existing software are the visible cost. Budget for training and admin time as well.

Model/Api Usage

Custom workflows pay for the tokens, search, audio or images they use. Usage grows with volume, so measure it during the pilot.

Integration And Workflow Build

Design, development, connectors and testing to link AI to your project, CRM and accounting systems are a separate cost line from the model.

Human Review

Reviewer time, exception handling and support are real operating costs. Include them when you calculate cost per successful outcome.

Monitoring And Maintenance

Prompt and model updates, regression tests and vendor changes continue after launch, so they belong in the ongoing budget.

Governance And Recovery

Access reviews, logging, controls and a tested failure-recovery path belong in the budget from the start, not added after an incident.

A practical construction test

  1. Define the business outcome.
  2. Measure how the workflow performs today.
  3. Identify what AI is being asked to interpret or decide.
  4. Define what remains under human authority.
  5. Test with real examples and acceptance criteria.
  6. Measure results before expanding scale or autonomy.

Where governance fits

The AI model can change. The company’s operating rules should not change silently with it. Catha’s Governance Cage is designed to preserve the business authority layer above the model and workflow.