A thorough analysis from cybersecurity and observability pioneer Splunk has provided fresh insight into the level of artificial intelligence (AI) adoption in a number of industries, given how quickly the field is developing. The results are startling: every participant, from the public and commercial sectors, is involved in some aspect of using AI, whether it be deployment, testing, planning, or research.
There is also a clear consensus among them all towards the use of AI. But there are also concerns associated with this broad adoption of AI, which points to a crucial turning point when businesses need to overcome difficult obstacles in order to fully use AI.
A dilemma is at the center of the story around the adoption of AI. Even with AI systems' widespread use, there would still be a persistent lack of confidence in them. Building trust in AI-enabled systems requires a well-defined approach since concerns about data privacy, security, system dependability, and data quality are critical. This problem would especially be serious in the field of cybersecurity, where AI is playing an increasingly important role. Trust and reliability in AI-powered cybersecurity solutions are identified by decision-makers as the main concerns in both the public (48%) and private (36%) sectors. This highlights the importance of early policy choices in creating long-term AI strategy.
An interesting contrast between the public and commercial sectors' use of AI is provided by the survey. In contrast to earlier technological trends, the federal agency adoption rate (79%) is almost exactly the same as the public sector as a whole (83%). This connection has led to common AI issues and objectives between industries. In the public domain, for example, building incident response plans (43%) and threat intelligence (45%) are ranked as the top two defenses against cybersecurity risks, with continuous monitoring (50%) receiving the most attention.
Cybersecurity Tops the List of Applications
According to the survey, it’s interesting to note that expectations for AI use in the future are comparable in both areas. The main drivers of artificial intelligence are seen as innovation (31% public, 29% private), improving products or services (28% public, 31% private), and boosting citizen and consumer experiences (30% public, 27% private). Surprisingly, cybersecurity tops the list of applications, with 80% of respondents using AI for tasks including threat data analysis (29%), risk assessment (33%), and monitoring (34%). AI may improve cybersecurity detection, investigation, and response capabilities. One example of this is the usage of technologies like Splunk's AI assistant, which makes use of large language models (LLMs).
But there are still a lot of regulatory obstacles to overcome. Rather than letting local countries regulate AI, a sizable majority (78%) support international ethical standards. This demand for a global regulatory framework emphasizes how AI is affecting the world.
The trend towards automation is noteworthy, as shown by the fact that 53% of the public sector and 44% of the private sector are actively using AI for automation to increase productivity. This tendency suggests that AI will increasingly be used as a tool to improve operational efficiency inside businesses, rather than only for its analytical potential.
