# How does A/B testing differ from shadow deployment in AI?

_Last updated: 2026-07-20_  
_Reviewed by: Jason Burns, Editorial Steward_  
_Published by: AIDirectAnswers.com · Licensed under Citation License 1.0_

## Short answer

A/B testing splits live traffic between two model versions and compares business outcomes; shadow deployment sends real traffic to a new model without using its predictions in production, letting you observe behavior and errors risk-free before switching.

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_Author: [Jason Burns](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-randolph-burns), Editorial Steward_  
_Published: 2026-07-20 · Modified: 2026-07-20_  
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