By 2025, AI has become widespread in businesses, with growing investment from large corporations and suppliers. This new use has shifted the attack surface; recent incidents have shown that SaaS solutions or partners can become vectors for attack if the fundamentals are not in place. In 2026, the priority shifts from rapid innovation to leveraging existing solutions: governed AI, integration of generative AI into business lines, effective cybersecurity, responsible digital technology, and preparation for trust in hybrid and post-quantum environments. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
The real agenda for 2026 is to transform AI into a fully-fledged business capability. This means focusing efforts on a few use cases that really matter, aligning the people who share responsibility for them, and bringing AI into everyday work. According to Wavestone's Global AI Survey 2025, 90% of companies are integrating AI into their business strategy, and 13% of IT budgets are devoted to AI..
What priorities should be set for 2026?
The experimental phase of generative AI has mainly relied on large generalist models accessible via chat-type interfaces. In 2026, the question is how to bring this generative AI into the heart of the enterprise. You have to choose between features built into SaaS solutions, neutral platforms that you control, or a mix of both, and decide how far to go with agents that can act directly on systems.
What priorities should be set for 2026?
Le rapport CERT-W 2025 de Wavestone indicates that the majority of incidents stem from common vulnerabilities, such as insufficiently secure SaaS access or the use of easily obtained credentials. Attacks now target the periphery (subsidiaries, partners), while defenses remain focused on the main IT system. By 2026, these exposed areas must therefore be reduced and AI used to effectively strengthen security without creating new blind spots.
What priorities should be set for 2026?
By 2026, organizations will manage non-financial performance with the same rigor as financial performance. IT systems must improve their ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) data and offer reliable tools. IT managers must monitor the impact of infrastructure and provide platforms that enable robust management of non-financial indicators. The challenge is to reconcile the rapid development of AI with the reduction of carbon footprints.
In 2026, the dilemma is no longer limited to choosing between a public or sovereign cloud: it is now a question of analyzing what degree of regionalization to adopt for your architecture, to which areas to apply it, and how to maintain sufficient flexibility in the face of potential changes in context.
What priorities should be set for 2026?
AI workloads require more computing power, data, and low latency, but many cloud infrastructures are ill-suited to this. By 2026, the goal will be to be “AI-ready” without multiplying GPUs: expanding the cloud where necessary, improving the observability of distributed platforms, and managing AI power as a constraint to be optimized.
What priorities should be set for 2026?
Starting in 2026, quantum computing will threaten current cryptography, making RSA and ECC algorithms vulnerable to future quantum computers. CIOs and CISOs must anticipate this risk now to prevent it from becoming a crisis in a few years, and move from the research stage to operational preparedness.
What priorities should be set for 2026?
At the dawn of 2026, organizations find themselves at a strategic turning point where technological innovation is no longer enough: it is now the ability to integrate, govern, and secure these advances that will make the difference. AI is becoming a real lever for transformation, provided it is anchored in business processes, ethically controlled, and secure from end to end. At the same time, cybersecurity covering your entire digital ecosystem, regionalization of IT systems, sustainable IT, and preparation for the post-quantum era are imposing a new discipline: that of responsible, sovereign, and high-performance technology. CIOs and technology managers must therefore adopt a holistic vision that combines innovation, resilience, and sustainability. Successful companies will be those that are able to simplify, streamline, and intelligently orchestrate their technology choices to create sustainable value.
Source : Wavestone