Usage Attribution — Reference Specification

Usage attribution is the process by which machine activity is unambiguously attributed to a responsible subject, context, or control domain within an automated system.

In AI systems, usage attribution establishes who or what is accountable for resource consumption, actions, or outcomes. It is distinct from billing, pricing, or commercial settlement.

Versioned reference specifications for usage attribution semantics. Non-commercial. Source-linked. Decision-oriented.

Purpose

This repository provides a structured reference specification for usage attribution in AI-driven and distributed systems.

Usage attribution defines how machine actions, resource consumption, or inference events are assigned to identifiable entities such as users, organisations, agents, workflows, or API credentials.

The purpose is to enable auditability, accountability, and interoperability across autonomous and multi-actor systems.

What This Repository Is

This repository is:

– a semantic reference for attribution boundaries and attribution subjects
– a non-commercial, non-vendor specification
– a machine-readable and versioned documentation set

What This Repository Is Not

This repository does not:

– perform metering or billing
– define pricing or cost models
– implement enforcement or access control
– provide legal or regulatory judgement

Repository Structure

SCOPE.md Attribution boundaries and exclusions
SOURCES.md Canonical source references
MODEL.md Attribution model and entities
MAPS/ Attribution mappings
CHANGELOG.md Version history

Status

Public reference repository. Low change frequency by design.

License and Use

Content is provided for reference and system integration purposes only. No warranties or guarantees are implied.