The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence across the UAE is creating new cybersecurity challenges for businesses, with experts warning that organisations face increasingly sophisticated threats as AI becomes embedded in daily operations.
While the UAE has emerged as one of the world’s leading markets for AI adoption, cybersecurity is becoming a growing concern as enterprises deploy the technology at scale, according to Salah Suleiman, Managing Director, South Gulf, TrendAI.
Speaking at Gisec 2026 in Dubai, Suleiman said businesses are no longer focused solely on how to implement AI but are increasingly concerned about securing their digital environments as the technology becomes more widespread. “As businesses move further into AI adoption, cybersecurity becomes increasingly important. Organisations are not only asking how they can implement AI, but also how they can secure their overall environment,” he said.
The warning comes as companies across industries move beyond experimenting with AI and begin integrating it into core business processes, a shift that experts believe will increase both operational efficiencies and cyber risks.
According to Suleiman, the threat landscape is evolving rapidly because cybercriminals are also adopting AI to enhance their capabilities.
“The threat landscape is evolving rapidly and becoming more dangerous, particularly as AI becomes part of the picture,” he said.”Attackers can also use AI, which means organisations need to think differently about how they defend themselves.”
He argued that traditional cybersecurity approaches may no longer be sufficient, particularly as attacks become more automated and capable of operating at greater speed and scale.
“We always say that we need to secure AI with AI,” Suleiman said.”Businesses should therefore prepare for threats that are faster, more automated and potentially more sophisticated than traditional attacks.”
The rise of agentic AI, which can operate with greater autonomy and make decisions with limited human intervention, is also creating new governance concerns for enterprises. Businesses need to ensure that AI systems are deployed responsibly and with adequate controls in place, he said.
“The key challenge is ensuring that AI tools are implemented responsibly, with the right controls in place,” Suleiman said.”Businesses need to understand the risks associated with AI and establish appropriate governance frameworks so they can benefit from the technology while reducing potential operational and security risks.”
The UAE has recognised these challenges and is stepping up collaboration between government entities, technology firms and other stakeholders to strengthen AI governance and security frameworks, according to Suleiman.
As investment in AI infrastructure accelerates, he expects spending on cybersecurity, cloud technologies and governance capabilities to rise alongside it. The UAE is already investing heavily in AI infrastructure as it seeks to position itself among the world’s leading AI markets.
For business leaders, cybersecurity can no longer be treated as an afterthought, Suleiman said. “Cybersecurity needs to be considered alongside AI adoption from the beginning, rather than treated as something that comes later.”
Looking ahead, he expects AI adoption across the UAE to continue accelerating, but said the organisations best placed to benefit will be those that balance innovation with security and governance.”The organisations that are able to adapt to the speed of AI while maintaining security and operational control will be better positioned for the next stage of the market.”
Source: Khaleej Times