F5 / Procurement

Analyse bids faster, buy AI without blind spots.

Your buyers compare fifty-page bids, reread clauses nobody has standardised and track suppliers whose data is scattered across the ERP, spreadsheets and email. AI can read, compare and flag on their behalf, provided your criteria, your reference clauses and the very meaning of ‘supplier’ are written down first.

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Three concrete uses

01Comparing bids in a call for tenders
AI Act level · Minimal risk
F5 · Comparing bids in a call for tenders
1. 01Read the responsesAppendices and reservations included
2. 02Extract commitmentsPrices, lead times, service levels
3. 03Fill in the gridGaps and omissions flagged
4. CheckSign-off by the buyer and the committee
5. 04Score and awardBy the committee, with written reasons
The problem
Each supplier answers in its own format, with its own units and reservations tucked away in appendices. The comparison grid is filled in by hand, and gaps go unnoticed.
What the AI does
AI extracts prices, lead times, commitments and reservations from each bid, places them in your grid and flags what is missing or departs from the specification. It does not score the bids or choose the winner.
Data needed
The specification, the weighted criteria grid and the suppliers’ responses.
Who signs off
The buyer checks each extraction against the source, then the award committee scores and decides.
Minimal risk (EU · AI Act): the tool helps read bids from companies and decides nothing; still check that bids carry no unnecessary personal data, such as consultants’ CVs (EU · GDPR).
02Checking clauses against your reference library
AI Act level · Minimal risk
F5 · Checking clauses against your reference library
1. 01Load the contractVersion received from the supplier
2. 02Compare with referencesStandard clauses and fallback positions
3. 03Rank the deviationsBlocking, negotiable, acceptable
4. CheckSign-off by legal
5. 04Decide and signLawyer, then authorised signatory
The problem
Contracts come back with clauses the supplier has changed: capped liability, termination, ownership of deliverables. Legal does not have time to read everything with the same care.
What the AI does
AI compares each clause with your reference clause and fallback positions, then highlights deviations and how serious they are. It does not negotiate and approves no clause.
Data needed
Your library of standard clauses, your fallback positions and the proposed contract.
Who signs off
The lawyer or buyer settles every flagged deviation before anything is signed.
Minimal risk (EU · AI Act): this is a review aid; the contract itself must stay in a tool whose hosting and non-reuse of data are guaranteed.
03Vetting an AI supplier before you sign
AI Act level · Minimal risk
F5 · Vetting an AI supplier before you sign
1. 01Send the questionnaireData, hosting, sub-processors, exit
2. 02Analyse the answersGaps against your grid
3. 03Classify the useMinimal, transparency or high risk
4. CheckSign-off by procurement, IT and the DPO
5. 04Sign or renegotiateClauses added to the contract
The problem
AI tools are often bought like any software subscription. Nobody asks where the data goes, which sub-processors handle it or how to get data and settings back on exit.
What the AI does
A structured questionnaire and an assistant compare the supplier’s answers and documentation with your grid: hosting, sub-processors, reuse of data for training, logs, exit, AI Act classification. The assistant flags missing or evasive answers; it does not approve the supplier.
Data needed
The completed questionnaire, the contract, the data processing agreement and the list of sub-processors.
Who signs off
The buyer, IT and the data protection officer sign off together before signature.
The assistant itself is minimal risk; it is the system being bought that may be high-risk (recruitment, credit…) and then place obligations on you as deployer (EU · AI Act, Art. 26).

To define before launching AI

This is meaning debt: if these words lack a single definition and an owner, no agent will give a reliable answer, and no control will be possible.

“Supplier”Parent company, subsidiary or billing site: until this is settled, one supplier shows up three times and its volumes are understated.
“Compliant bid”Is a bid with reservations compliant? Write down which reservations rule it out and which can be negotiated.
“Reference clause”Without a validated, dated version of each standard clause, AI compares the contract with whatever template it finds in your folders.
“Committed spend”Signed order, receipt or invoice: each point gives a different amount; choose the one AI should count.

What applies to you

EU · GDPRAn AI supplier that processes personal data on your behalf is a processor: the contract must set its instructions, bar any further sub-processor without your written authorisation, provide for deletion or return of the data at the end and give you audit rights (Article 28).
EU · AI ActIf you put your name on a high-risk system or substantially modify it, you become its provider (Article 25). Obligations for Annex III high-risk systems apply from 2 December 2027 (Regulation (EU) 2026/1744): contracts signed today should already provide for documentation, logs and human oversight.
EU · Data ActFor cloud services, including SaaS, the contract must let you switch provider with at most two months’ notice and a thirty-day transition (Article 25); from 12 January 2027, switching charges are banned (Article 29).
France · Sapin II ActCompanies with at least 500 employees and turnover above €100 million must assess their customers, first-tier suppliers and intermediaries against their corruption risk map (Article 17). An AI tool can prepare this assessment; it does not replace it.

What to measure

Time from receipt of bids to the analysis report
Share of clause deviations caught before signature rather than after
Share of AI contracts with an exit clause, a sub-processor list and audit rights

What Clairancy does

A · Framing and decision
Define priority procurement use cases, the criteria grid and reference clauses before choosing a tool.
B · Owner-side delivery
Draft the specification for your AI purchases (data, logs, exit, audit rights) and analyse bids alongside your buyers.
D · Governance and compliance
Classify each tool you buy under the AI Act and the GDPR, and build the evidence file you will need at audit.

Concepts to understand

Read on the blog

Frequently asked questions

Other functions

Can AI choose the supplier for us?

No. It can prepare the comparison and flag gaps, but scoring and the decision stay with the buyer and the committee, who must be able to give reasons.

Which clauses should we require when buying an AI tool?

At a minimum: hosting location, list of sub-processors, no reuse of your data to train a model without your consent, log retention, return of data and settings on exit, audit rights. For a high-risk system, add the documentation and human oversight required by the AI Act.

A supplier says it is ‘AI Act compliant’. Is that enough?

No. Ask which classification it applies to each AI feature and for the supporting evidence. For a high-risk system, ask whether it applies EN 18286, the harmonised quality management standard cited in the EU Official Journal in October 2026.

Independent analysis, not legal advice. Up to date as of 29 October 2026.

Analyse bids faster, buy AI without blind spots.

Submit a brief

Three concrete uses

01Comparing bids in a call for tenders

AI Act level · Minimal risk

F5 · Comparing bids in a call for tenders

01Read the responsesAppendices and reservations included

02Extract commitmentsPrices, lead times, service levels

03Fill in the gridGaps and omissions flagged

CheckSign-off by the buyer and the committee

04Score and awardBy the committee, with written reasons

The problem: Each supplier answers in its own format, with its own units and reservations tucked away in appendices. The comparison grid is filled in by hand, and gaps go unnoticed.
What the AI does: AI extracts prices, lead times, commitments and reservations from each bid, places them in your grid and flags what is missing or departs from the specification. It does not score the bids or choose the winner.
Data needed: The specification, the weighted criteria grid and the suppliers’ responses.
Who signs off: The buyer checks each extraction against the source, then the award committee scores and decides.

Minimal risk (EU · AI Act): the tool helps read bids from companies and decides nothing; still check that bids carry no unnecessary personal data, such as consultants’ CVs (EU · GDPR).

02Checking clauses against your reference library

AI Act level · Minimal risk

F5 · Checking clauses against your reference library

01Load the contractVersion received from the supplier

02Compare with referencesStandard clauses and fallback positions

03Rank the deviationsBlocking, negotiable, acceptable

CheckSign-off by legal

04Decide and signLawyer, then authorised signatory

The problem: Contracts come back with clauses the supplier has changed: capped liability, termination, ownership of deliverables. Legal does not have time to read everything with the same care.
What the AI does: AI compares each clause with your reference clause and fallback positions, then highlights deviations and how serious they are. It does not negotiate and approves no clause.
Data needed: Your library of standard clauses, your fallback positions and the proposed contract.
Who signs off: The lawyer or buyer settles every flagged deviation before anything is signed.

Minimal risk (EU · AI Act): this is a review aid; the contract itself must stay in a tool whose hosting and non-reuse of data are guaranteed.

03Vetting an AI supplier before you sign

AI Act level · Minimal risk

F5 · Vetting an AI supplier before you sign

01Send the questionnaireData, hosting, sub-processors, exit

02Analyse the answersGaps against your grid

03Classify the useMinimal, transparency or high risk

CheckSign-off by procurement, IT and the DPO

04Sign or renegotiateClauses added to the contract

The problem: AI tools are often bought like any software subscription. Nobody asks where the data goes, which sub-processors handle it or how to get data and settings back on exit.
What the AI does: A structured questionnaire and an assistant compare the supplier’s answers and documentation with your grid: hosting, sub-processors, reuse of data for training, logs, exit, AI Act classification. The assistant flags missing or evasive answers; it does not approve the supplier.
Data needed: The completed questionnaire, the contract, the data processing agreement and the list of sub-processors.
Who signs off: The buyer, IT and the data protection officer sign off together before signature.

The assistant itself is minimal risk; it is the system being bought that may be high-risk (recruitment, credit…) and then place obligations on you as deployer (EU · AI Act, Art. 26).

What applies to you

EU · GDPRAn AI supplier that processes personal data on your behalf is a processor: the contract must set its instructions, bar any further sub-processor without your written authorisation, provide for deletion or return of the data at the end and give you audit rights (Article 28).

EU · AI ActIf you put your name on a high-risk system or substantially modify it, you become its provider (Article 25). Obligations for Annex III high-risk systems apply from 2 December 2027 (Regulation (EU) 2026/1744): contracts signed today should already provide for documentation, logs and human oversight.

EU · Data ActFor cloud services, including SaaS, the contract must let you switch provider with at most two months’ notice and a thirty-day transition (Article 25); from 12 January 2027, switching charges are banned (Article 29).

France · Sapin II ActCompanies with at least 500 employees and turnover above €100 million must assess their customers, first-tier suppliers and intermediaries against their corruption risk map (Article 17). An AI tool can prepare this assessment; it does not replace it.

What Clairancy does

A · Framing and decision

Define priority procurement use cases, the criteria grid and reference clauses before choosing a tool.

B · Owner-side delivery

Draft the specification for your AI purchases (data, logs, exit, audit rights) and analyse bids alongside your buyers.

D · Governance and compliance

Classify each tool you buy under the AI Act and the GDPR, and build the evidence file you will need at audit.