AI Glossary Term
What does “Red Teaming” mean?
Definition
Stress-testing an AI system with adversarial prompts to reveal failures and risks.
How Red Teaming works
Example
Before a model launches, specialists try to coax it into giving dangerous instructions, leaking private data, or showing biased behavior. Each failure is logged and used to improve the system, then the tests are repeated.
Why it matters
It finds weaknesses before the public does. It cannot prove a system is safe, only show what was found with the effort spent.
Common questions
Who does red teaming?
Internal teams, external experts, and sometimes open challenges where members of the public try to break a model.
Where does the name come from?
From security and military practice, where a 'red team' plays the adversary to test defenses.
Is it a one-time step?
No. Models and uses change, so testing continues after release.