Most teams measure:
- →latency
- →token usage
- →API cost
They don't measure: Cost of incorrect execution.
The Real Cost Chain
Cause → Effect Unvalidated output → incorrect action → downstream correction → human intervention → system distrust
This shows up as:
- →manual fixes
- →support escalations
- →reconciliation pipelines
- →duplicated operations
So your system looks like it's "working." But operational cost is increasing.
Key Insight
Reducing token cost while increasing error cost is not an optimization. It's displacement.
AI Efficiency|LLM Controls|Enterprise AI|AI Cost