Three Configurations of Human-in-the-Loop
Human involvement in AI-assisted workflows exists on a spectrum with three distinct configurations:
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Human-in-Control (Full HITL) – Humans make all operational decisions; AI provides support, scoring, or recommendations. The human is the decision-maker.
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Human-on-the-Loop (HOtL) – AI executes predefined tasks under conditional human oversight. Humans monitor operations and intervene when needed. The human is the supervisor.
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Human-out-of-the-Loop (HOoTL) – AI autonomously manages tasks with minimal human interaction. Humans primarily audit, govern, and set policy. The human is the auditor.
The appropriate configuration depends on task risk, task complexity, and accumulated trust in the AI system. Most real deployments require dynamic transitions between configurations rather than a fixed choice.
Related: 05-atom—hitl-autonomy-inverse