51% of organizations say that AI improved SOC team efficiency.

AI is used for transaction fraud detection by 39% of financial institutions.

59% cite a lack of internal expertise to validate AI vendor claims, which is also up from last year.

53% of organizations report reaching full or mature AI adoption stages, which is up from 47% in 2024.

More than 50% of fraud is driven by artificial intelligence and hyper-realistic impersonations.

AI is used for anti-money laundering efforts by 30% of financial institutions.

Only 11% of SMBs have adopted AI-powered defenses. This is also stated as only 11% of SMBs currently using AI-powered security.

AI-driven attacks now occur as frequently as phishing, placing AI firmly among the top three cybersecurity threats.

The majority (52%) of organizations say their network/connectivity infrastructure is not ready to support new technology initiatives, such as AI

42% of global businesses say concerns over AI governance or ethics remain a significant obstacle to implementing AI initiatives in their organization

35% cite resistance from employees regarding their jobs as a significant obstacle to implementing AI initiatives.

28% of global technology executives say expectations within their organization of what AI can do are growing faster than their ability to meet them

45% say their network performance is preventing or limiting their organization’s networks from supporting large data/AI projects. This is up from 38% in 2024

34% cite keeping up with the pace of change as a significant obstacle to implementing AI initiatives.

A 29% of global businesses say current external technology partners not having the right capabilities remains a significant obstacle to implementing AI initiatives in their organization.

79% of global technology leaders believe the focus on AI has raised their profile at the board level. This is up from 60% in 2024

Only 12% of global businesses say AI has fallen short of expectations to date

87% of business leaders believe AI will be important to fulfilling business priorities in the next 12 months

A third (equivalent to 33.3%) of global technology leaders believe their board has unrealistic expectations or demands on how new technologies like AI will impact business performance

AI-based tools for sale in the cybercriminal underground were found for as little as 30 cents USD