The AI rush is repeating a familiar mistake. Early in my career, a risk executive I worked with used to say, “You didn’t invite me to drink the beer; now you want me to pay the bill?” whenever problems came up because a project moved ahead without enough oversight. If someone tried to avoid explaining the details, he’d add, “I don’t know if you’re showing me the monster’s head or just its toe.”
Since 2011, I’ve watched new products, business services and innovations launch without enough security or risk checks. Cloud computing, big data, BYOD, APIs, IoT, social media and low-code are just a few examples. We usually innovate first and worry about governance later.
AI is following the same pattern. Leaders in many industries are excited about AI, just like they were with earlier technologies. But many still don’t have a clear way to track where AI is used, who owns the risks or how automated decisions could affect the business.
