FAQ

    Terminology management & multilingual ontology

    Plain-language answers to the questions teams ask when building a governed source of truth for product names, messaging, and market rules.

    Two different things

    AI features on top of your tools vs. governance underneath them

    Output you check afterwards
    Decisions the model is bound by upfront
    Probabilistic — varies run to run
    Deterministic — the same answer every time
    Auditing means re-reading the output
    Auditing means reading the record
    The tool decides, you correct it
    A named person decided, with the reasoning attached

    Terminology basics

    Terminology management is the practice of defining, approving, storing, and distributing the words your company uses in a consistent way. It covers product names, feature terms, UI labels, and the market-specific rules that govern them. The goal is to make sure every team and every AI tool writes the same thing in the same way, so you don't ship conflicting or legally risky copy.

    Concepts & ontologies

    A concept is the idea behind a product, feature, or message. A term is the word used to express that idea in a specific language or market. One concept can have many terms, such as "Analytics" in English and "Análise de Dados" in Brazilian Portuguese. Keeping concepts and terms separate is what makes multilingual terminology scalable.

    Multilingual markets

    Translation is about finding the right words. Market rules are about whether, when, and how those words can be used. A term can be approved in one market, on hold in another, or require a legal disclaimer in a third. Black Ice stores both the translation and the market rule, so the output respects the full context of each locale.

    AI, LLMs & RAG

    Large language models are trained on general language, not your brand. Governed terminology gives them a reference layer with approved names, forbidden variants, and market rules. The model can then produce copy that matches your brand voice, avoids banned terms, and respects market availability instead of inventing its own words.

    Tools & formats

    Black Ice supports JSON, CSV, Markdown, ZIP, PDF, and RDF/OWL serializations including Turtle and JSON-LD. CSV and JSON are useful for localization tools and spreadsheets. Markdown and RDF formats are ideal for AI agents, knowledge graphs, and semantic web applications.

    Getting started with Black Ice

    Black Ice has a free tier for solo creators, a Pro tier at €49 per month, and a Builder tier at €199 per month. All plans include API access, MCP integration, and core export formats. See the pricing page for a full comparison of limits and features.

    Still have questions?

    Talk to the team about your terminology, markets, and AI integration.

    Contact us