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Exabeam, a global leader in intelligence and automation for security operations, today released its multinational report, From Adoption to Accountability: The New Economics of AI in Cybersecurity. Surveying 750 IT decision-makers responsible for security in organizations with 500+ employees across 12 countries, the study reveals a striking paradox: cybersecurity budgets are growing at unprecedented levels in 2026, largely driven by AI transformation, yet security leaders struggle to measure, justify, and align these investments with business outcomes.
While 95% of organizations plan to increase cybersecurity budgets in 2026—with 74% expecting double-digit growth—AI occupies contradictory positions in budget planning. It ranks as the top driver of increases (44%), the first investment cut if budgets tighten (44%), and the most difficult spend to justify to stakeholders (32%). This disconnect highlights a critical accountability challenge as AI shifts from experimental tool to core operational component.
"Security leaders are getting mandates to invest in AI, but nobody's given them a way to prove it's working. You can't measure AI transformation with pre-AI metrics," said Steve Wilson, Chief AI and Product Officer at Exabeam. "The problem isn't that security teams lack data. They're drowning in it. The issue is they're tracking the wrong things and speaking a language the board doesn't understand. Those are the budgets that get cut first. The window to fix this is closing fast."
Cybersecurity investment trends reflect a fundamental shift, with AI and automation emerging as the primary catalyst for budget expansion (44%), ahead of cloud infrastructure growth (33%) and mainstream business AI adoption (32%). Unlike previous cycles focused on headcount, the AI era channels spending toward technology that transforms security operations.
Despite confidence in value delivery, a significant gap persists in translating security investments into business language. Boards prioritize measurable risk reduction and resilience over technical speed gains. Security teams must evolve metrics to demonstrate how AI eliminates conditions that enable incidents, rather than simply responding faster.
"In AI-assisted environments, traditional metrics like mean time to resolution (MTTR) becomes almost automatic, so speed alone doesn’t prove risk has been reduced," said Kevin Kirkwood, CISO at Exabeam. "We need new ways to measure security effectiveness that actually show business impact, because boards don’t fund faster ticket closure, they fund measurable risk reduction and business resilience."
Adoption maturity varies significantly by region. Saudi Arabia shows aggressive progress (75% report AI improving operations), aligned with national digital transformation goals, while European and some Asian markets emphasize cautious evaluation and workforce considerations.
Organizations that succeed will develop outcomes-based frameworks linking AI performance to business resilience, improve executive communication, and establish accountability mechanisms before economic conditions shift and budget scrutiny intensifies.
Methodology Conducted by Sapio Research on behalf of Exabeam in December 2025, the survey includes 750 IT decision-makers responsible for security in organizations with 500+ employees across 12 countries: UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Netherlands, USA, Canada, India, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Japan, and Australia. Respondents span technology, financial services, manufacturing, healthcare, retail, telecommunications, and government sectors.
About Exabeam
Exabeam is a leader in intelligence and automation that powers security operations for the world’s smartest companies. As a global cybersecurity innovator, Exabeam provides industry-proven, security-focused, and flexible solutions for faster, more accurate threat detection, investigation, and response (TDIR). Cutting-edge technology enhances security operations center performance, optimizing workflows, and accelerating time to resolution. With consistent leadership in AI innovation and a proven track record in security information and event management (SIEM) and user behavior analytics, Exabeam empowers global security teams to combat cyberthreats, mitigate risk, and streamline operations.
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