In her piece, Emerging Trends in AI Ethics and Governance for 2026, Nahla Davies highlights a reality I think every organization needs to stop ignoring: AI isn’t waiting for you to figure this out. It evolves while your governance frameworks collect dust. And here’s what concerns me most: every model update, every dataset refresh, every third-party integration is quietly reintroducing biases and exposing you to real-world consequences. Based on my observation, static oversight can’t contain these risks.

Look, I believe organizations need to combine standard audits with adaptive governance and real-time monitoring. And honestly? In my view, calling these “best practices” is too generous. This is the bare minimum. Because based on what I’ve seen, ethical risks don’t wait for your quarterly review. They accumulate in the shadows and make a mockery of annual compliance theater.

Let’s talk about privacy, because I think this is where organizations reveal their true priorities. If you’re still treating privacy as something to “address later,” you’ve already lost. It’s a foundational design principle. I feel that protecting sensitive data and safeguarding user trust are the only things standing between you and a reputation-destroying breach.

Here’s another uncomfortable truth: your AI systems aren’t operating in isolation. They’re tangled webs of pre-trained models, APIs, and third-party data sources that most organizations barely understand. Without proper visibility and accountability, you’re not just risking bias or vulnerabilities. In my opinion, you’re guaranteeing them.

I feel like I need to be brutally honest, the gap between what AI can do and what your governance can manage? It’s becoming a chasm. I think organizations desperately need adaptive governance that responds to change in real-time. You need privacy engineering baked in from day one. You need supply chain accountability. Let me be clear, AI governance isn’t some abstract exercise. It’s a dynamic, high-stakes challenge happening right now. I think organizations that believe “awareness” counts as progress are deluding themselves.

Static checklists and annual reviews are security blankets for people who don’t want to admit how fast they’re falling behind. Governance needs to move at the speed of AI itself. Immediately.

Here’s what frustrates me: AI isn’t hitting pause while you debate semantics in committee meetings. It’s evolving and reshaping entire industries while you figure out who owns the ethics mandate. I think organizations that wait will watch their trust evaporate and their competitors sprint past them.

The question was never whether AI would change your business. It already has. The real question is: Are you actively shaping that change, or are you just letting it happen to you? Because from where I’m sitting, it looks like the latter. And I think that should terrify you.