AIR APAC Standard · AIRS-J/1
AIRS-J/1 defines the judgment a person exercises when AI produces the answer: nine dimensions, public anchors, claims that each name their basis, and a credential that belongs to the person who earns it. Version 2.0 is in force, and certification is open.
Two instruments
Unit of analysis: one individual, one assessment. Produces a portable judgment credential scored against a public rubric and recorded in a free public register. Assessments run on StepSim, the official instrument. StepSim is an AIR APAC initiative, built and operated by Exeter Labs. The owner of AIR APAC also owns Exeter Labs, and the Standard declares this common ownership in section 4.9. Section 4.9 →
Unit of analysis: one organisation. Produces an outside-in public-signal visibility score (RPS) and tier, published quarterly across APAC markets.
An organisation’s Index position is not a function of its employees’ certifications, and a certification confers no Index effect. The two models share no structure and are not convertible.
These rules cost us revenue. That is how you can tell they are rules.
How AIR APAC stays independent →AIR APAC AI Readiness Pulse · Q2 2026
The unit of analysis is the organisation, not the economy. 5,820 candidates screened across 23 markets and six sectors. 3,359 cleared the evidence gate. 1,000 are published by name.
One research asset among many. The Pulse informs the field; it does not define AIR APAC's full audience. See sourcing and methodology →
Why a public rubric
| Their limitation | The opening |
|---|---|
| Assessments are customised per employer, so results are not comparable across organisations. | A fixed, published standard that makes results comparable across employers, sectors and markets. |
| Credentials are employer-owned and disappear when the employee leaves. | A person-owned, portable credential. |
| Rubrics are proprietary and unpublished. | A public, versioned rubric, reviewed by a published board, that anyone can inspect and contest. |
| No independent register. | A free, public verification register. |
A platform vendor tells an employer what their people can do.
What the free public register records, and who may verify it (section 14).
AIR APAC tells a market what a person is certified to do.
The competency model
In AIR APAC material, “dimension” means one of these nine. The organisational Readiness System uses components and the Pulse uses signals; the models share no structure and are not convertible.
Framing the problem before reaching for a tool.
Interrogating evidence, including machine-generated evidence.
Authority, people, and being seen to act.
Deciding proportionately, and owning the decision.
What a result and a credential claim
| A result or credential is | Basis |
|---|---|
| Validated | It meets the validation programme in Section 11.7, checks V1 to V5, as published in the current validation report. |
| Psychometric | Levels are derived by published rules from observed evidence, with reliability and stability shown under Section 11.7, checks V2 and V3. |
| Predictive of job performance | Higher levels go with better outcomes on unseen assessment situations, and with later performance at work as employers share it (Section 11.7, check V6). |
| Bias-free | Matched candidates who differ only in gender, age, nationality, first language, market or job level reach the same levels (Section 11.7, check V7), and outcomes are monitored under Section 15. |
| For hiring, promotion and employee assessment | AIR APAC's expert reading of the person's judgment, which the employer may rely on. The employment decision is the employer's (Section 12.6). |
| The credential is not | Because |
|---|---|
| A measure of intelligence or personality | The construct is observable decision behaviour, not a trait. |
| A measure of AI technical skill | Prompt craft, model selection and tool fluency are not assessed. |
| A measure of domain expertise | Scenarios supply the domain content the candidate needs. |
| A substitute for supervision, professional licensing or regulatory authorisation | Nothing in this credential authorises a holder to act beyond their existing professional or legal authority. |
Market dossiers · Q2 2026
22 market dossiers, each a 20-page PDF built from the same index. Organisations named and scored, market by market.
What AIR APAC does
The Standard, the Index, and their limits are public. Programs and audits are sold, and never to anyone AIR APAC is currently measuring.
Explore the AIR APAC research
The Readiness System scores six components across people, process, and data.
→02Programs that train your people to lead AI readiness themselves.
→03Advisory that converts a clear readiness diagnosis into practical next steps.
→04The nine public dimensions of the published standard, free to read.
→Audiences
The organisational readiness offer is not built for startups or small businesses: without legacy systems or departmental silos, the readiness problem AIR APAC solves does not exist yet. The Standard is a different track with no employer-size condition: any individual may present for assessment, with or without prior training.
The Readiness System
AI fails when people are unprepared, processes are unclear, or data cannot be trusted. Published pillar weights. See the Readiness System
How we work
Six-component scoring before any technology commitment.
A focused action framework with 90-day milestones and a clear stop-list.
Capability that remains inside the organisation.
Featured finding · Singapore · Q2 2026
89 companies here publish proof of capability, averaging 65 of 100.
The numbers
Programs and advisory
AI readiness is not a report you receive. It is a capability your organisation builds, practises, and owns.
The Pulse measures what the outside can see. The Scorecard measures the organisation behind it. The gap between them is the work.
Institutional credibility
