Security executives across various industries are increasing investments in artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to tackle escalating financial pressures.

Under escalating cost pressures and as cyber threats become increasingly intricate, Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) are turning to Artificial Intelligence (AI) to alleviate the burden, suggests new research.

Cybersecurity budgets face mounting pressure, with just 20% of global security leaders and consultants dedicating over 10% of their annual budget to cybersecurity - a 12% decrease since 2023.

Significantly, the study by Wipro for its 2025 State of Cybersecurity Report found that 30% prioritize investing in AI automation to fortify their cybersecurity operations and economize costs.

Similarly, approximately a third of respondents are utilizing AI to enhance threat detection and decrease response times, with a quarter using it to bolster incident response capabilities.

"Cybersecurity budgets are straining under the increasing cunning of cyber threats," said Tony Buffomante, SVP and global head of cybersecurity and risk services at Wipro.

"AI offers a solution, enabling organizations to fortify their defenses while optimizing expenditures. This empowering CISOs to move towards a more results-driven focus, prioritizing risk-weighted returns on investments."

While AI offers promising solutions, over 84% of survey participants cited data quality and privacy as the biggest obstacle in deploying effective AI-driven cybersecurity solutions.

Other obstacles mentioned included a lack of expertise (75% of tech leaders), dependence on external resources or expensive upskilling programs, integration with legacy systems, and budgetary constraints stemming from substantial investments in hardware components and software licenses, not to mention continuous system maintenance.

Other tactics used by CISOs to streamline costs include tools rationalization, which involves evaluating and amalgamating duplicative security tools across platforms to eliminate redundancies and boost efficiency, while reducing costs.

Approximately 26% of respondents specifically focus on tools rationalization at present.

Tool sprawl has emerged as a recurring issue for cybersecurity practitioners in recent years, with research showing teams grow weary of an expanding assortment of divergent solutions.

Meanwhile, 23% of CISOs aim to curtail costs by optimizing security and risk management processes, while a fifth prioritize simplifying their operational model.

Organizations seem to adopt a strategic approach to cybersecurity, with a near-universal emphasis on Zero Trust security frameworks, identified as a top investment priority by 97% of respondents.

In addition, 82% are investing in Internet of Things device management and security, while 78% prioritize investments in Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) to cope with the rapid adoption of the cloud, the proliferation of remote work, and the evolving security landscape.

With an influx of AI tools, more than half (55%) of security leaders stated they are intensifying efforts to implement Logical Layer Model (LLM) guardrails, thereby better managing and securing access to enterprise applications.

"The escalating complexity of technology, ever-changing regulations, and rising sophistication of cyber threats across multi-hybrid cloud environments create formidable challenges for security teams," said Buffomante.

"CISOs must adopt a forward-looking, results-oriented mindset, transitioning from technologists merely preventing and reacting to breaches to risk strategists focused on optimizing enterprise cyber resilience."

[1] A survey of 700+ senior executives on AI, cybersecurity, and other IT challenges.[2] The study collected data from global security leaders and consultants specializing in cybersecurity and other information technology matters.[3] Wipro's 2025 State of Cybersecurity Report provides detailed insights into the current landscape, priorities, and challenges within the cybersecurity industry.[4] The "State of Cybersecurity Report" explores the strategies employed by Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) to manage risks and costs effectively while ensuring robust cybersecurity.

In an attempt to economize costs and fortify cybersecurity, over 30% of respondents prioritize investing in AI automation to boost their operations, as suggested in the Wipro's 2025 State of Cybersecurity Report.
Additionally, approximately a third of respondents utilize AI for enhanced threat detection and expedited response times, while a quarter implement AI to strengthen their incident response capabilities.
Despite the potential of AI, over 84% of survey participants mention data quality and privacy as the most significant obstacle in deploying effective AI-driven cybersecurity solutions.

Security executives across various industries are increasing investments in artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to tackle escalating financial pressures.