2026 Predictions: What’s Next for IT, AI, and Cybersecurity

Brian Harmison, CEO

1. The data reckoning will redefine AI readiness.

In 2026, organizations will realize that their biggest barrier to AI success isn’t model quality. It’s data chaos. Years of SaaS sprawl and hybrid collaboration have left critical business data scattered across SharePoint, OneDrive, and countless cloud platforms. Companies eager to use AI on their data will confront the reality that they don’t actually know where their data lives, who owns it, or how secure it is.

This reckoning will trigger a new era of data governance in which structure replaces speed. Leaders will map ownership, eliminate duplication, and establish a single source of truth before training or deploying new models. The result will separate hype from execution. Organizations that fix their data foundations will see AI drive measurable value, while others will automate confusion at scale.

2. The MSP model will return to its relationship roots.

After years of transactional contracts and rigid scopes, 2026 will mark a reset for managed service providers. Customers are no longer satisfied with vendors who say, “that’s out of scope.” They want true partners who operate like extensions of their internal teams, solving problems proactively and delivering outcomes, not just support tickets.

The MSPs that thrive will rebuild around trust, transparency, and accountability. They’ll focus on shared success metrics instead of break/fix response times and will use AI-driven insights to anticipate customer needs before issues arise. As the market consolidates and expectations rise, the providers that lead will be those who make technology feel seamless and place relationships at the center of the value they deliver.

Ross Filipek, CISO

1. Autonomous AI attacks will create a speed gap that human defenders can’t close.

In 2026, the biggest disruption in cybersecurity won’t be a new exploit. It will be a widening speed gap between attackers and defenders. Agentic AI will behave less like a tool and more like a swarm, scanning for misconfigurations, chaining vulnerabilities, shifting laterally, and launching payloads in seconds. These autonomous systems will hit critical infrastructure the hardest, exploiting the growing overlap of IT and OT environments that were never designed to withstand machine-speed attacks.

This new reality will expose an uncomfortable truth: by the time a human analyst identifies a breach, an autonomous attacker may have already completed its objectives and compromised sensitive business information. Organizations will need defenses that can operate at the same velocity — continuous validation, automated containment, and AI-driven detection that reacts before attackers finish their sequence. The winners won’t be the teams with the largest SOCs, but the ones willing to let automation take the first move.

2. Supply chain compromise will become the quietest and most devastating attack vector.

Attackers won’t waste time breaching organizations one by one in 2026. Supply chain compromise will become the most efficient way to reach thousands of downstream environments in a single move. Attackers are already targeting the connective tissue that holds modern businesses together, and in the new year, that strategy will accelerate at a velocity we haven’t seen before. Small, specialized vendors embedded deep in everyday workflows will become prime targets because compromising them quietly opens doors across entire ecosystems.

What’s changing isn’t just the frequency. It’s also the subtlety. Attackers will increasingly hide inside trusted integrations, auto-updating tools, and third-party services that businesses rarely scrutinize. These compromises won’t announce themselves with dramatic indicators. They’ll spread quietly, gaining access long before anyone realizes a supplier was the entry point. The next SolarWinds-scale incident won’t be an anomaly. It will reflect a new normal where “attack one, infect many” defines modern cybercrime.

Preparing for 2026 and Beyond

As we head into 2026, one thing is clear: organizations can’t afford guesswork. The pressures facing IT and security teams, from AI-driven attacks to fragmented data foundations and tightening supply chain risk, require partners who bring clarity, experience, and a proactive strategy.

Corsica is here to help. Whether you’re strengthening your data governance, preparing for machine-speed threats, or rethinking your managed services strategy, our team is ready to support you with the expertise and partnership-first approach these challenges demand. If you’re planning for 2026 and want a more resilient foundation, let’s talk. Discover how Corsica can help your organization stay secure, ready, and confident in the year ahead.