Glossary of procurement AI systems

Six classes of AI systems in procurement, listed in lifecycle order. Each entry links to a short reference page defining the class, its unit of work and the classes it is most often confused with.

1. Market Intelligence & Category Data
Pre-award, continuous
External price indices, cost drivers and supplier profiles as reference data.
2. Scenario-Based Procurement Analytics
Pre-award
Modelling total cost of ownership, negotiation scenarios and risk exposure for a planned contract.
3. Autonomous Sourcing
Sourcing event
Configuring, running and optimising sourcing events with limited human intervention.
4. Transactional & Intake AI
Transaction execution
Intake, requisitions, purchase orders, vendor onboarding and invoice processing.
5. Spend Analytics & Audit
Post-award reporting
Classification and analysis of historical transaction data for reporting and audit.
6. Supply Chain Risk Monitoring
Post-award, continuous
Mapping supplier networks and monitoring external events against them.