Glossary
Proof record
The 16-field record written for every action, allowed or refused; SHA-256, chained. "No seventeenth field, ever."
Read the termGlossary · Term 02 of 39
AI audit trail
An AI audit trail is a linked record of every action an AI system proposed, the rules that were checked, who approved it and what happened. A useful trail records refusals as well as allowed actions. In elan1 each entry is a 16-field proof record, hash-chained so later changes are evident.
In one sentence: A linked record of every action an AI system proposed, the rules checked, who approved it and the outcome.
01In more detail
What it means in practice
Most logs record what a tool did. An AI audit trail also records why it was allowed: which rules ran, at which version, which gates passed and who approved. Without the policy decision, a log shows activity but cannot show control.
Refused actions belong in the trail too. In elan1 every write intent, allowed or refused, ends in one proof record, and records are SHA-256 hash-chained, so a change to an earlier record is evident.
02Where this shows up in elan1
The 16-field proof record elan1 Govern writes for every write intent, allowed or refused.
Defined in the elan1 glossary · Last reviewed 10 Oct 2026. Definitions change only with a dated note.
// SEE IT
See the term in a governed action.
The walkthrough follows one write from intent to proof record, using the words in this glossary.