# 3.2 AI system capabilities, ISO 42102

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  3.2 Defined term

  

# AI system capabilities

  The collective term for what an AI system can do: the abilities and functionalities attributed to it. The entry is a synonym pointer, so the operative meaning sits in the entry for capability.

  
- defined term

- ISO/IEC DIS 42102

- Last updated: 2026-10-22

  
    

## What this settles

The plural is the label of one axis of the matrix. Using it as a collective noun helps a reader see that the capability side is a set, not a single property, and that a system may hold several at once.

    

## Who it binds

No one. It is a definition and a pointer.

    

## What to do in your practice

Use the plural for the axis and the singular for one claim. Keep the distinction visible in the inventory: a column headed "AI system capabilities" should hold several rows, not one summary sentence.

    

## Evidence an auditor or regulator asks for

      Three artefacts that make this unit checkableA capability register with more than one row per system where more than one applies.Shows the collective term is used as a set.
A note explaining the singular and plural usage.Prevents the two being confused in policy text.
A review example where a single capability claim was separated from the set.Proves the distinction is applied.

    Ask your teamDoes our inventory treat AI system capabilities as a list or as one summary field?

    

## Common gaps this page catches

- The inventory has one free-text field for all capabilities.

- The plural label is used for a single claim, so the matrix collapses.

- Policy text and inventory text use different plurals for the same idea.

    

## What to prepare before publication

Split the single field into rows and label the axis exactly as the draft does. The change is small and makes the matrix possible.

    

## How to test it here

Take one live system rather than a template, find the field or sentence where AI system capabilities is used, and put this page beside it. Record the answer, the artefact and the date. A glossary entry on its own is an intention; a dated record beside a live artefact is evidence.

    

## What this page does not claim

The page does not reproduce the draft, does not know the descriptor wording that the public preview withholds, and does not certify the system or the organisation. It states the unit at the claim level "defined term" and stops where the public record stops.

    

## Common questions

    What does AI system capabilities mean in ISO/IEC DIS 42102?
The collective term for what an AI system can do: the abilities and functionalities attributed to it. The entry is a synonym pointer, so the operative meaning sits in the entry for capability.
What evidence should we keep for 3.2?
A capability register with more than one row per system where more than one applies. A note explaining the singular and plural usage.
Is AI system capabilities a requirement?
No. The draft is a descriptive framework. It sets no management system requirement and no conformity test. It becomes binding only when a contract, a regulator or a management system adopts it.

    

## Related units

    
- 3 Terms and definitions

- 3.3 capability

- 6 AI system capabilities dimension

- 7.3 Characterization framework of AI system methods and capabilities

  

  
    
      

## Source and claim

      ISO/IEC DIS 42102, Clause 3.2, AI system capabilities

      Open the ISO public entry

      https://www.iso.org/standard/86898.html

      Retrieved 22 October 2026.

      The definition is in the public preview, in clause 3.

    

    
      

## The record

      Stage 40.60, Close of voting, recorded 8 September 2026.

      Planning date 16 September 2027, an estimate. See the basis.

      The draft record · How it is built

    

    
      

## Check your own system

      Build the method and capability matrix from ten answers and see which cells still need evidence.

      Run the free check

    

  

Nothing here is guessed while you wait. Every line is written from the public ISO record and the public preview, and points to the exact clause it came from. How the record is built.

Last updated: 2026-10-22 · Markdown version · Check your system

Source: https://iso-42102-revision-checker.theartofservice.com/glossary/ai-system-capabilities/