SAP’s Guiding Principles for Artificial Intelligence
Recognizing the significant impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on people, our customers, and society, SAP designed these guiding principles to steer the development and deployment of our AI software to help the world run better and improve people’s lives. Lataa tiedosto2© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
Introduction
2
SAP believes that Artificial Intelligence has the potential to unlock boundless potential
for businesses, governments, and society. However, AI may also create economic,
political, and societal challenges, depending on how it is used and implemented. SAP’s
Global AI Ethics Policy therefore governs the development, deployment, use, and sale
of AI systems at SAP, defining clear ethical rules grounded in UNESCO’s
“Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence” and other frameworks – so we
can help the world run better and improve people’s lives.
As a cornerstone of our responsible AI and social sustainability agenda, these
guidelines are a commitment to move beyond what is legally required to address the
broader ethical and socioeconomic challenges of AI — recognizing that ethical AI is a
shared responsibility across the entire ecosystem.
We look forward to engaging with customers, partners, employees, legislative bodies,
and civil society to ensure our AI Ethics approach evolves alongside these discussions
and the ever-changing technological landscape.
© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
Introduction
2
SAP believes that Artificial Intelligence has the potential to unlock boundless potential
for businesses, governments, and society. However, AI may also create economic,
political, and societal challenges, depending on how it is used and implemented. SAP’s
Global AI Ethics Policy therefore governs the development, deployment, use, and sale
of AI systems at SAP, defining clear ethical rules grounded in UNESCO’s
“Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence” and other frameworks – so we
can help the world run better and improve people’s lives.
As a cornerstone of our responsible AI and social sustainability agenda, these
guidelines are a commitment to move beyond what is legally required to address the
broader ethical and socioeconomic challenges of AI — recognizing that ethical AI is a
shared responsibility across the entire ecosystem.
We look forward to engaging with customers, partners, employees, legislative bodies,
and civil society to ensure our AI Ethics approach evolves alongside these discussions
and the ever-changing technological landscape.
© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
3© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
01 Proportionality
02 Safety and Security
03 Fairness and non-discrimination
04 Sustainability
05 Right to privacy and data protection
06 Human oversight and determination
07 Transparency and explainability
08 Responsibility and accountability
09 Awareness and literacy
10 Multistakeholder and adoptive governance and
collaboration
SAP’s AI Ethics Guiding Principles
Adapted from UNESCO Recommendation
01 Proportionality
02 Safety and Security
03 Fairness and non-discrimination
04 Sustainability
05 Right to privacy and data protection
06 Human oversight and determination
07 Transparency and explainability
08 Responsibility and accountability
09 Awareness and literacy
10 Multistakeholder and adoptive governance and
collaboration
SAP’s AI Ethics Guiding Principles
Adapted from UNESCO Recommendation
4© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
SAP Executive Board
Executive sponsorship (CEO)
• Sponsors AI program
• Approves AI Ethics frameworks
• Has ultimate accountability for high-risk use cases
Global AI Ethics Steering
Committee
Cross-company executive leaders
• Oversees all high-risk use cases and approves critical ones
• Sets priorities, budgets, and resource allocation
• Advises the Board
High-Risk Use Case
Review Committee
Multidisciplinary team composed
of subject matter experts
• Reviews high-risk AI use cases, assesses risks, and proposes mitigations
• Flags critical use cases for escalation to the Steering Committee
SAP AI Ethics Office
Internal governance and
operationalization teams
Governance
• Provides ethical framework
• Orchestrates the governance process
• Drives AI Ethics assessment process
Operationalization
• Provides guidance for
implementing AI Ethics in AI
system development
Global AI Ethics
Advisory Panel
Company external academics,
policy experts, industry experts
• Provides constructive
outside-in feedback,
perspectives, and
strategic guidance to
SAP on AI Ethics
SAP’s AI Ethics Governance Structure
SAP Executive Board
Executive sponsorship (CEO)
• Sponsors AI program
• Approves AI Ethics frameworks
• Has ultimate accountability for high-risk use cases
Global AI Ethics Steering
Committee
Cross-company executive leaders
• Oversees all high-risk use cases and approves critical ones
• Sets priorities, budgets, and resource allocation
• Advises the Board
High-Risk Use Case
Review Committee
Multidisciplinary team composed
of subject matter experts
• Reviews high-risk AI use cases, assesses risks, and proposes mitigations
• Flags critical use cases for escalation to the Steering Committee
SAP AI Ethics Office
Internal governance and
operationalization teams
Governance
• Provides ethical framework
• Orchestrates the governance process
• Drives AI Ethics assessment process
Operationalization
• Provides guidance for
implementing AI Ethics in AI
system development
Global AI Ethics
Advisory Panel
Company external academics,
policy experts, industry experts
• Provides constructive
outside-in feedback,
perspectives, and
strategic guidance to
SAP on AI Ethics
SAP’s AI Ethics Governance Structure
5© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
01Proportionality
01
Proportionality
02Safety and Security
02
Safety and
Security
Proportional AI Systems must not exceed what is
necessary to achieve their intended purpose and
must be used in a context-appropriate manner to
minimize potential harm. Accordingly, we define a
clear scope for AI systems and evaluate whether
the AI system’s behavior matches this scope.
As part of SAP’s AI Ethics use case impact
assessment process, impact classification
mechanisms and measures to mitigate harm are
defined to ensure that human rights and
fundamental freedoms are safeguarded.
01 We ensure proportionality
and avoid harm
Guiding Principles and Governance Bodies
SAP’s AI Ethics
09Awareness and literacy
09
Awareness and
literacy
03Fairness and non-discrimination
03
Fairness and
non-discrimination
04Sustainability
04
Sustainability
05Right to privacy and data protection
05
Right to privacy and
data protection
06Human oversight and determination
06
Human oversight
and determination
07Transparency and explainability
07
Transparency and
explainability
08Responsibility and accountability
08
Responsibility and
accountability
10Multistakeholder and adoptive governance
10
Multistakeholder and
adoptive governance
01Proportionality
01
Proportionality
02Safety and Security
02
Safety and
Security
Proportional AI Systems must not exceed what is
necessary to achieve their intended purpose and
must be used in a context-appropriate manner to
minimize potential harm. Accordingly, we define a
clear scope for AI systems and evaluate whether
the AI system’s behavior matches this scope.
As part of SAP’s AI Ethics use case impact
assessment process, impact classification
mechanisms and measures to mitigate harm are
defined to ensure that human rights and
fundamental freedoms are safeguarded.
01 We ensure proportionality
and avoid harm
Guiding Principles and Governance Bodies
SAP’s AI Ethics
09Awareness and literacy
09
Awareness and
literacy
03Fairness and non-discrimination
03
Fairness and
non-discrimination
04Sustainability
04
Sustainability
05Right to privacy and data protection
05
Right to privacy and
data protection
06Human oversight and determination
06
Human oversight
and determination
07Transparency and explainability
07
Transparency and
explainability
08Responsibility and accountability
08
Responsibility and
accountability
10Multistakeholder and adoptive governance
10
Multistakeholder and
adoptive governance
6© 2026 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved. See Legal Notice on www.sap.com/legal-notice for use terms, disclaimers, disclosures, or restrictions related to this material.
01Proportionality
01
Proportionality
09Awareness and literacy
09
Awareness and
literacy
02Safety and Security
02
Safety and
Security
03Fairness and non-discrimination
03
Fairness and
non-discrimination
04Sustainability
04
Sustainability
05Right to privacy and data protection
05
Right to privacy and
data protection
06Human oversight and determination
06
Human oversight
and determination
07Transparency and explainability
07
Transparency and
explainability
08Responsibility and accountability
08
Responsibility and
accountability
10Multistakeholder and adoptive governance
10
Multistakeholder and
adoptive governance
As with any of our products, our AI systems are
subject to our security standards and quality
assurance process throughout the AI system
lifecycle, including safeguarding the quality and
integrity of training and inference data. Our AI
systems undergo extensive testing to prevent
unintended or unsafe behavior.
We work closely with our customers and users to
uphold and further improve our systems’ security,
safety, quality and reliability.
02 We uphold safety and
security standards
Guiding Principles and Governance Bodies
SAP’s AI Ethics
01Proportionality
01
Proportionality
09Awareness and literacy
09
Awareness and
literacy
02Safety and Security
02
Safety and
Security
03Fairness and non-discrimination
03
Fairness and
non-discrimination
04Sustainability
04
Sustainability
05Right to privacy and data protection
05
Right to privacy and
data protection
06Human oversight and determination
06
Human oversight
and determination
07Transparency and explainability
07
Transparency and
explainability
08Responsibility and accountability
08
Responsibility and
accountability
10Multistakeholder and adoptive governance
10
Multistakeholder and
adoptive governance
As with any of our products, our AI systems are
subject to our security standards and quality
assurance process throughout the AI system
lifecycle, including safeguarding the quality and
integrity of training and inference data. Our AI
systems undergo extensive testing to prevent
unintended or unsafe behavior.
We work closely with our customers and users to
uphold and further improve our systems’ security,
safety, quality and reliability.
02 We uphold safety and
security standards
Guiding Principles and Governance Bodies
SAP’s AI Ethics