What happened
NIST published (18 September 2026, per page published-time metadata) the ARIA Evaluation Planning Manual: Elements of ARIA-Style AI Evaluations, a NIST publication defining the planning elements for evaluations in the style of NIST's Assessing Risks and Impacts of AI (ARIA) program — operationalising the AI RMF risk-measurement function with quantitative/qualitative methodologies and metrics to determine whether an AI system is valid, reliable, safe, secure, private and fair in deployment context.
Why it matters
ARIA is NIST's programmatic bridge from the AI RMF (a risk-management framework) to measurable, testable AI safety/security evaluation. The planning manual gives practitioners a concrete template for scoping ARIA-style evaluations of their AI systems, feeding risk measurement that regulators and assurance bodies increasingly expect alongside RMF/ISO 42001 mapping.
Action needed
Review the manual when scoping AI evaluation/test plans; align evaluation planning and risk measurement with NIST ARIA methodology to support AI RMF and assurance claims.