GenAI Tools: What Steps are Companies Taking to Mitigate Risks?

A recent Deloitte survey on the state of Generative AI adoption by businesses says that worries about regulatory compliance, difficulty managing risks and the lack of a governance model are among the top barriers to development and deployment of AI tools.  The survey says that companies are working to establish risk mitigation programs and build oversight capabilities to ensure the responsible use of these tools.  Here are some of the specific risk mitigation actions that respondents said their companies were undertaking:

– 51% said they were establishing a governance framework for the use of GenAI tools/applications
– 49% reported monitoring regulatory requirements and ensuring compliance
– 43% were conducting internal audits and testing of GenAI tools/applications
– 37% said training practitioners how to recognize and mitigate potential risks
– 35% were ensuring that a human validates all AI generated content
– 33% were keeping a formal inventory of all GenAI implementations
– 30% reported were using a formal group or board to advise on GenAI related risks
– 23% were using outside vendors to conduct independent audits and testing
– 19% had appointed a single executive to be responsible for managing GenAI related risks

Despite their importance for effectively scaling the process of adopting GenAI tools, the report notes that aside from establishing governance frameworks, each of these actions is being taken by less than half of the organizations surveyed.  Survey respondents included nearly 2,800 senior leaders, including board and C-suite members, from organizations in 14 different countries.

– John Jenkins