Nearly all execs have major concerns about using AI – so they’re holding it back till they’re dealt with

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Nearly all executives have put the brakes on generative AI rollouts in order to establish some ground rules first. 

A report from PagerDuty has found that 98% of the 1,000 tech executives it surveyed at Fortune 100 firms have directed their teams to pause GenAI initiatives while polices are put in place.

The survey also found that every single respondent had concerns regarding the security risks of AI, and 51% said the right guidelines should be in place at their firm before using it.

Feeling the pull

However, they are also feeling the pull in the other direction, as 46% believe that they need to adopt GenAI as soon as possible to avoid falling behind, “regardless of the parameters.” But a quarter still don’t trust the technology.

PagerDuty CIO Eric Johnson commented, “tech executives are usually early adopters eager to deploy advanced technologies, but only if they can do it safely and within a company’s prescribed guidelines. Our survey shows there’s hesitation to experiment with GenAI until they can trust the results.”

He added, “Key to deploying GenAI at scale is providing these organizations with the right technology and a solid foundation of trust that helps them experiment in a safer environment than what exists today.”

The risk to their company’s reputation was also a reason for half of executives being reluctant to use GenAI. 51% felt unease over the legal and copyright issues related to deploying it too.

The survey also found that less than a third (29%) of firms had formal guidelines in place for GenAI use, but 66% are currently in the process of establishing them. And despite executives pausing its use while this is being done, 64% report that AI is already being used in most or all of their firm’s departments. 98% said that their companies are at least experimenting with the technology.

PagerDuty notes that “while GenAI offers significant potential for streamlining operations and enhancing innovation, recognizing these concerns and ensuring human oversight are crucial for its integration into organizational workflows.”

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