Public Sector AI Adoption Outpaces Governance, SolarWinds Report Finds — SolarWinds Corporation

Event summary

SolarWinds' report surveyed 800+ public sector IT professionals in the U.S. and U.K.
90% of IT leaders believe AI governance is on pace with or ahead of adoption, but only 10% have the three necessary governance pillars in place.
44% of respondents reported AI-related security incidents rising year-over-year.
Less than half (48%) of respondents with OT environments say it's fully integrated with IT monitoring.
53% of public sector IT teams have increased headcount, but skills gaps persist in AI and security expertise.

The big picture

The report highlights a significant disconnect between the rapid adoption of AI in the public sector and the foundational governance structures needed to support it. This trend is not isolated to AI but extends to broader operational visibility and cybersecurity resilience, posing risks to critical public infrastructure. As agencies continue to invest in IT and security teams, the persistent skills gap underscores that funding alone is not sufficient to address governance and operational challenges.

What we're watching

Governance Dynamics: How public sector agencies will close the gap between perceived and actual AI governance to mitigate risks.
Security Risks: Whether the deliberate loosening of security controls for AI-powered work will lead to increased vulnerabilities.
Skills Gap: The pace at which public sector IT teams can acquire specialized AI and security expertise to support Zero Trust and other resilient systems.