AI Needs Strong IT Base
Info-Tech Report: AI Execution Drives CIOs Back to IT Fundamentals for Confident Scaling
AI has stopped being a vision and started being a problem to solve. PR Newswire reports that Info-Tech Research Group's Best of 2026 Mid-Year Report finds CIOs are abandoning flashy AI experiments and racing back to basics — data quality, governance, infrastructure, and risk management — because their organizations lack the foundations needed to scale AI safely.
The report, which tracks the most-used research and tools from the first half of 2026, shows demand surging for guidance on cybersecurity, data strategy, vendor evaluation, and workforce readiness. Just 19% of organizations have fully built AI governance frameworks, even as 58% say AI is now embedded in their enterprise-wide strategy — up from 26% in 2025, according to Info-Tech Research Group.
AI Adoption Outpaced the Infrastructure Beneath It
The gap between AI ambition and AI readiness is stark. Info-Tech's data shows fewer than 1 in 4 organizations regularly measure their AI risk maturity. Nearly one-third of tech leaders believe their companies are already overinvesting in AI without seeing clear financial returns, according to Experis. Boards are done rewarding enthusiasm. They want proof.
Tom Zehren, CEO of Info-Tech Research Group, put it plainly at the Info-Tech LIVE 2026 conference in Las Vegas earlier this month. CIO Dive reported his words: "We're living in a world where we have a significant tension between AI value creation on the one side and AI governance and risk management on the other." That tension, the mid-year report suggests, is what's forcing CIOs back to fundamentals.
Regulations Are Forcing Governance to the Top of Every Agenda
Compliance deadlines are adding pressure from the outside. The EU AI Act hits major milestones in August 2026. The EU Cyber Resilience Act starts reporting requirements in September 2026. These laws are not optional, and they are forcing CIOs to prioritize governance now — not later, according to Jade Global.
The result is a rush toward structured risk programs. Info-Tech's most-accessed research this year covers AI governance, enterprise risk, and information management. Research Director Heather Leier-Murray notes that the skills required are shifting too. PR Newswire quotes her saying that "technical skills alone will no longer define success" — emotional intelligence and business judgment are now the key differentiators.
Software Buying Has Become Its Own Crisis for IT Leaders
CIOs are calling it the "SaaSpocalypse." AI-native software vendors have flooded the market with new pricing models — metered usage, agentic platform bundles, consumption-based billing. What used to be a straightforward software contract is now a complex financial risk. Info-Tech flagged this trend across January through May 2026, and vendor evaluation jumped into the top 12 most-accessed resources in their mid-year report.
Major vendors like Microsoft, ServiceNow, and Oracle are marketing "agentic AI" as a ready-to-deploy solution. But Info-Tech's research tells a different story on the ground. Practitioners say these new models create pricing complexity that is hard to budget for. Finance Yahoo reports that CIOs are responding by returning to rigorous vendor evaluation — one of the oldest IT disciplines there is.
The Human Edge: Soft Skills Rise as AI Handles the Routine
As AI takes over repetitive technical tasks, the IT workforce is being reshaped. Entry-level technical roles face pressure from automation. Info-Tech's outlook, echoed by TechTarget, warns that a "talent divide" is forming — between workers who use AI as a co-pilot and those who don't adapt at all. Rob Meikle, an executive counselor at Info-Tech, described the moment as a "radical shift in the IT stack" at Info-Tech LIVE.
Meanwhile, 43% of CIOs report budget increases for 2026, and 46% plan to spend more on technology and services, according to Gartner. But outcome-based funding is becoming the new standard. If a project cannot show a direct cost reduction or revenue gain, it is unlikely to survive the budget cycle. The message from the mid-year report is simple: build the foundation first, or the AI investment will not stick.
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