Analyst Market Briefings

The CISO Agenda Just Shifted: What AI Governance Means for Your 2027 Pitch

23 October, 2026 Analyst Market Briefings ADAPT’s latest Security Edge research reveals a security agenda being reshaped by AI. AI governance has jumped from fifth place in May…

ADAPT’s latest Security Edge research reveals a security agenda being reshaped by AI. AI governance has jumped from fifth place in May to become the number one security initiative for Australian CISOs, while governing AI, agents and autonomous workflows is now their biggest security constraint for the next 12 to 24 months.

The investment signal is equally strong. 75% of CISOs are looking to materially change or expand AI security, governance and model protection, ahead of every other security capability assessed. Yet the organisational mandate has not caught up. CIOs overwhelmingly place AI governance with technology leadership, with only 2% assigning ownership to the CISO.

At the same time, AI is exposing a broader readiness gap. As threats and systems become more autonomous, CISOs are placing greater importance on real time visibility, automated containment and resilience. Around a quarter still cannot say how quickly their organisation detects or responds to a security incident, while funding and competing priorities remain the leading barriers to execution.

For tech providers, this changes the security conversation. More tools are not necessarily the answer. Tool sprawl ranks last among current CISO security constraints, while relevance, practical expertise and understanding the client environment matter more in vendor engagement.

Watch the replay now.

Gabby Fredkin Head of Analytics & Insights

Gabby’s primary role is managing analysis to produce ADAPT’s actionable insights. He has extensive experience in using data to identify technology trends... More

Gabby’s primary role is managing analysis to produce ADAPT’s actionable insights. He has extensive experience in using data to identify technology trends to support Australian organisations.

Using modern data science techniques, he provides ADAPT and its customers with confidence in the accuracy and validity of the information used for ADAPT’s research, advisory and events.

With a passion for creating stories with data, Gabby is consistently rated as one of the top speakers at ADAPT’s events. In roundtable discussions, he specialises in using statistics to initiate thought-provoking discussions.

Gabby is effective in translating information into insights, enabling ADAPT’s customers to become more data-driven.

Gabby’s primary areas of expertise are:

Advanced AI and ML practices, including AI ethics.
Building models to benchmark and predict IT performance.
End-user behaviour and human-centred design.
Cross-functional team design and value, such as DevSecOps.