Frontier AI governance map Updated May 2026
A teaching map · interactive · two views

How frontier AI is actually governed today.

Six layers across the rows, METR's nine common elements as an orthogonal filter. Click a layer chip to see what it does and how it connects. Click a coverage category to see which mechanisms address it — and which don't.

The map organises by who acts, not what they regulate: the EU AI Act sits in Layer 2 (statute), the EU AI Office in Layer 6 (the institution enforcing it). Hover any layer label for a fuller definition.

39
mechanisms mapped
17
voluntary or norm-only
8
binding with penalties
9
coverage categories
Color
Layer 1

International

Multilateral norms and summits

Layer 2

National regulation

Statutes, executive orders, agencies

Layer 3

Sub-national

US states filling the federal gap

Layer 4

Industry voluntary

Cross-firm commitments and codes

Layer 5

Corporate self-governance

Frontier safety frameworks at each lab

Layer 6

Infrastructure

Regulators, AISIs, evaluators, compute controls

Click any mechanism to see what it does, which of the nine elements it covers, and how it connects.
US fed US state EU UK China Other Asia Multilateral Corporate
phasing in ·proposed