Report by FusionAuth
2026 State of AI and Identity Report
Key Findings
80% of organizations report shadow AI (employees connecting AI tools without security or IT review).
85% of organizations have faced customer, partner, or regulatory demands to prove tenant isolation.
72% of organizations prioritize machine identity at scale when evaluating identity infrastructure.
64% of organizations that rate themselves "very confident" in their AI security posture have experienced a confirmed AI identity incident.
65% of organizations experienced a confirmed AI identity-related security incident in the past 12 months.
88% of organizations say AI deployment is outpacing their identity and security infrastructure.
23% of organizations reported a near miss for AI identity-related security in the past 12 months.
84% of organizations that rate themselves "extremely confident" in their AI security posture have experienced a confirmed AI identity incident.
83% confirmed incident rate for organizations using multi-tenant SaaS identity platforms.
38% confirmed incident rate for organizations using self-hosted or on-premises identity platforms.
56% of organizations face customer, partner, or regulatory demands to demonstrate tenant isolation frequently.
91% of organizations expect identity investment to increase in the next 12–18 months.
66% of organizations are planning a significant increase in identity investment.
57% of organizations prioritize deployment flexibility when evaluating identity infrastructure.
54% of organizations prioritize fine-grained authorization when evaluating identity infrastructure.
32% of organizations prioritize tenant isolation when evaluating identity infrastructure.
17% of organizations that rate themselves "not so confident" in their AI security posture have experienced a confirmed AI identity incident.
96% of companies running AI in production, using AI broadly, and operating on multi-tenant SaaS identity infrastructure face shadow AI challenges.
99% of organizations where AI is the primary driver of identity reevaluation and customers frequently demand proof of isolation reported a confirmed incident.
11% of organizations rank total cost of ownership last among identity infrastructure evaluation criteria.
93% of organizations say AI is a trigger for reevaluating identity infrastructure.
90% of companies running AI in production, using AI broadly, and operating on multi-tenant SaaS identity infrastructure reported a confirmed incident.
95% of organizations where AI is the primary driver of identity reevaluation and customers frequently demand proof of isolation are planning significant increases in investment.
12% of organizations emerged from the past year without an AI identity incident or close call.