Annex IV technical documentation
The detailed checklist in the EU AI Act that tells providers exactly what information their technical documentation must contain.
The Simple Version
The detailed checklist in the EU AI Act that tells providers exactly what information their technical documentation must contain.
Detailed Explanation
Annex IV specifies seven categories of required documentation: (1) a general description including intended purpose, version, and hardware; (2) a detailed description of the design and development process; (3) information on training, validation, and testing data; (4) monitoring, functioning, and control measures; (5) risk management measures; (6) changes made to the system across versions; and (7) a list of harmonised standards applied. The annex is cross-referenced with Articles 11 and 17 and must be read alongside post-market monitoring obligations under Article 72.
Key Characteristics
- Structured across seven content categories covering the full development lifecycle
- Data section requires detailed description of training data governance and representativeness
- Risk management section must align with ISO 31000 or equivalent methodology
- Versioning and change records required for all post-deployment updates
Why It Matters
MLOps and governance teams should map Annex IV requirements to their existing model cards, data cards, and experiment-tracking artefacts to identify documentation gaps efficiently.
Real-World Analogy
Similar to the technical file required for a CE-marked medical device under MDR, a structured dossier demonstrating that the product was designed, built, and tested to meet regulatory specifications.
Common Misconceptions
- Annex IV is a generic document template, it specifies required information categories, not a fixed form; providers choose how to structure and present the content.
- Model cards already satisfy Annex IV, model cards typically cover a subset of Annex IV requirements; providers must assess and fill gaps.