In accordance with various embodiments, described herein is a system (Data Artificial Intelligence system, Data AI system), for use with a data integration or other computing environment, that leverages machine learning (ML, DataFlow Machine Learning, DFML), for use in managing a flow of data (dataflow, DF), and building complex dataflow software applications (dataflow applications, pipelines). In accordance with an embodiment, the system can provide data governance functionality such as, for example, provenance (where a particular data came from), lineage (how the data was acquired/processed), security (who was responsible for the data), classification (what is the data about), impact (how impactful is the data to a business), retention (how long should the data live), and validity (whether the data should be excluded/included for analysis/processing), for each slice of data pertinent to a particular snapshot in time; which can then be used in making lifecycle decisions and dataflow recommendations.