Artificial intelligenceEnabled devices and cybersecurity solutions were the top operational technology and emerging technology investment priorities for organizations across 20 industry sectors, including utilities, manufacturing, energy and transportation, worldwide, according to Safety Week.
According to a Cisco report, 89% of industrial enterprise employees said cybersecurity compliance was extremely or very important, but 39% named cybersecurity as the top challenge in operating and maintaining industrial infrastructure, primarily due to legacy system vulnerabilities, malware attacks, and insider threats. 41% of respondents also said organizational cybersecurity was managed independently by IT and OT teams, but AI was seen as helping to strengthen coordination between the two teams. AI has been leveraged by OT leaders to accelerate the delivery of higher-quality products, Cisco noted. “Companies that fail to update their industrial network infrastructure for AI to optimize efficiency, leverage data for AI models, support overworked employees, and defend against damaging cyberattacks will struggle to compete,” Cisco said.
