AI Adoption Outpaces Governance and ROI, ISACA Research Finds

Introduction

Artificial intelligence adoption is accelerating across organisations worldwide, but governance, oversight, and measurable return on investment continue to lag, according to new research from ISACA.

The organisation’s 2026 AI Pulse Poll found that while 90 percent of respondents believe employees are already using AI inside their organisation, only 22 percent said AI investments have met or exceeded expectations for ROI.

The global study surveyed more than 3,400 professionals working across cybersecurity, governance, IT audit, privacy, and emerging technology roles.

AI Adoption Is Rising Faster Than Governance

The report found organisations are rapidly embedding AI into day-to-day operations. However, many still lack mature governance frameworks and formal policies.

Only 38 percent of organisations currently have a comprehensive AI policy in place, up from 28 percent in 2025.

Meanwhile:

• 30 percent reported having only a limited AI policy
• 25 percent said they have no active AI policy at all
• 39 percent do not know whether their organisation has a documented AI shutdown or override process

The findings also revealed uncertainty around incident response readiness. More than half of respondents said they were unsure how long it would take to disable an AI system during a security incident.

Leadership Accountability Is Becoming a Major Issue

Half of the respondents in Oceania said boards and executive leadership should ultimately be accountable if AI systems cause serious harm or operational failures.

According to Jamie Norton, AI governance has evolved beyond an IT problem and is now a business leadership issue.

“What we’re seeing now is a shift from experimentation to accountability,” Norton said.

He added that organisations are moving quickly to integrate AI into operations while still trying to develop governance structures, policies, and workforce capabilities needed to manage long-term risk.

AI ROI Remains Unclear for Many Organisations

Despite widespread AI adoption, many organisations are still struggling to measure meaningful business outcomes.

The report found:

• 23 percent believe it is too early to determine AI ROI
• 22 percent do not know the ROI generated by AI initiatives
• 20 percent said AI projects have delivered limited ROI so far
• Only 22 percent reported AI investments met or exceeded expectations

The data suggests many businesses remain stuck between AI experimentation and operational maturity.

AI Productivity Gains Continue to Drive Adoption

Respondents said organisations are primarily using AI to improve efficiency and automate repetitive work.

The most common AI use cases included:

• Increasing productivity (62 percent)
• Creating written content (62 percent)
• Automating repetitive tasks (50 percent)
• Analysing large amounts of data (49 percent)

The findings reinforce how AI is increasingly being deployed as an operational support tool rather than a fully transformative capability.

Demand for AI Skills and Training Continues to Grow

The survey found that demand for AI-related skills is increasing rapidly across the digital trust sector.

Seventy-eight percent of respondents said AI skills are now extremely important to their profession, up from 72 percent in 2025.

At the same time:

• 33 percent said their organisation now trains all employees on AI
• 36 percent expect AI-related jobs to increase over the next 12 months
• Nearly seven in 10 said workloads have either increased or remained unchanged despite AI adoption

Organisations Still Lack Confidence in AI Risk Management

Concerns around AI-powered threats and misinformation remain high.

Respondents identified the biggest AI-related risks as:

• Misinformation and disinformation (82 percent)
• Privacy violations (74 percent)
• Social engineering attacks (60 percent)
• Loss of intellectual property (58 percent)
• Job displacement (42 percent)

Confidence levels also remain relatively low when it comes to detecting AI-generated misinformation.

Only 36 percent said they are confident in their organisation’s ability to identify AI-powered misinformation campaigns.

Ethical and Environmental Concerns Around AI Persist

Beyond operational risks, the research highlighted growing concerns around AI ethics and environmental impact.

Seventy-seven percent of respondents said environmental considerations are factored into their organisation’s AI discussions.

However, only 11 percent strongly agreed that organisations are paying enough attention to ethical standards surrounding AI implementation.

ISACA Expands AI Training and Certification Programs

To address growing demand for AI governance and security expertise, ISACA announced several new AI-focused certifications and training initiatives.

The organisation recently introduced:

• Advanced in AI Audit (AAIA)
• Advanced in AI Security Management (AAISM)
• Advanced in AI Risk (AAIR)

Additional information about the 2026 AI Pulse Poll is available through ISACA.

About Cyber News Live

Stay ahead with Cyber News Live! First, we deliver real-time reporting and sharp threat intelligence. Additionally, we provide educational content for professionals, practitioners, and curious minds. From there, whether it’s breaking breach alerts or deep dives into attack vectors, we cover it all. Ultimately, our mission is clear: we make complex cyber topics understandable. And beyond that, we ensure critical knowledge stays accessible to everyone.