At first, it seemed like a simple ask.

A data scientist at a large financial institution wanted to know which policies applied to a few datasets she was working with. Rather than pinging the compliance team again, she tried the new AI chatbot her team had just rolled out.

She typed: “What policies should I follow when working with branch data?”

The result? A vague response based on a column header called [branch_name]. No useful context. No policy guidance. Just a string with no meaning.

The chatbot didn’t fail because the model was broken. It failed because the data behind it lacked connection to business meaning.

Why AI Breaks Without Context

This is a familiar challenge for data governance and compliance leaders. AI tools only work when the metadata supporting them is clear, connected, and complete.

When glossary terms, policy rules, and data catalogs live in separate silos, AI outputs fall apart. Column headers get misread. Policy checks get skipped. Auditors find gaps.

This happens even at firms with strong governance programs. Why? Because the missing link is not more documentation. Instead it’s shared meaning that systems and people can use together.

Enter AI Linking: A Smarter Way to Map Data

TopBraid EDG introduces AI Linking, a feature designed to solve this exact problem. It uses vector-based AI to automatically connect messy, inconsistent data assets to the right business terms and policies.

That column labeled [branch_name]? AI Linking recognizes that it likely refers to bank branch. It surfaces that suggestion, and with a click, the two are linked.

Now, when someone asks what policies apply to [branch_name], the system can return the right policies because it understands what that term means in context.

No manual mapping. No last-minute scramble to connect assets before an audit. Just clear, explainable, policy-aware metadata.

What This Unlocks

With AI Linking in place, your team can:

• Build AI tools that give accurate, trusted answers
• Reduce compliance overhead by automating policy lookups
• Improve audit readiness by showing clear links between data, terms, and rules
• Support data scientists and engineers without burdening legal or governance teams

See It in Action

Want to see how it works?
In this video, Steve Hedden walks through how AI Linking and vector search power a policy-aware chatbot, showing the before and after of what happens when data is mapped correctly.