---
title: "Critical Capability Level (CCL)"
description: "In Google DeepMind's Frontier Safety Framework, a capability level at which a model may pose a heightened risk of severe harm without mitigations; reaching one calls for security and deployment…"
canonical: https://aigovernanceengineer.com/glossary/critical-capability-level-ccl
author: "Jorge García Aibar"
license: "CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)"
doi: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22956197
version: "0.5.0"
updated: 2026-09-30
---

# Critical Capability Level (CCL)

In Google DeepMind's Frontier Safety Framework, a capability level at which a model may pose a heightened risk of severe harm without mitigations; reaching one calls for security and deployment mitigations and a decision that the residual risk is acceptable. Version 3.1 adds lower Tracked Capability Levels [1].

- Developed in: [the frontier safety frameworks crosswalk](https://aigovernanceengineer.com/resources/frontier-safety-crosswalk#topic-thresholds)
- Chapters: [ch. 10, Reading List](https://aigovernanceengineer.com/bok/reading-list)
- In the glossary chapter: https://aigovernanceengineer.com/bok/glossary#t-critical-capability-level-ccl

## Sources

[1] Frontier Safety Framework, Version 3.1 (Critical and Tracked Capability Levels, security and deployment mitigations, annual review). Google DeepMind. 2026-04-17. https://storage.googleapis.com/deepmind-media/DeepMind.com/Blog/strengthening-our-frontier-safety-framework/frontier-safety-framework_3-1.pdf (verified: primary)