Welsh SMEs urged to start small with AI and set governance as shadow AI use grows
An interview with Jaymie Thomas, Co-founder of AI Wales, urges Welsh SMEs to begin AI adoption with small, measurable projects and not to delay out of fear of falling behind. The article is industry commentary and describes no specific incident, threat actor or vulnerability. Its main security-relevant point is "shadow AI": Deloitte's 2026 GenAI Workforce Survey of 25,000 UK workers found 31% of generative AI users at work did so without their employer's knowledge, and 46% used free tools. The UK Government's Cyber Security Breaches Survey found only 24% of businesses using or considering AI had security practices specifically for AI-related risks, while 31% had no plans to introduce them.
Technical Details
- The risk described is staff using unapproved free AI tools, which can lead to business data leakage.
- Thomas notes that data scattered across many folders and SharePoint sites should be consolidated and categorised before AI is deployed.
- ONS data cited: about 35% of UK firms with 10 or more employees used at least one AI technology in 2026, up from about 12% in late 2023.
Remediation
- Establish an AI policy that lists approved tools and defines acceptable use.
- Review how business data is organised and accessed before expanding AI adoption.
- Start with a simple, measurable use case on a process staff know well.
- Welsh employers may be eligible for a 75% contribution to approved AI training costs under the Flexible Skills Programme AI pilot, scheduled to run until the end of March 2027.
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Welsh SMEs urged to start small with AI and set governance as shadow AI use grows
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An interview with Jaymie Thomas, Co-founder of AI Wales, urges Welsh SMEs to begin AI adoption with small, measurable projects and not to delay out of fear of falling behind. The article is industry commentary and describes no specific incident, threat actor or vulnerability. Its main security-relevant point is "shadow AI": Deloitte's 2026 GenAI Workforce Survey of 25,000 UK workers found 31% of generative AI users at work did so without their employer's knowledge, and 46% used free tools. The UK Government's Cyber Security Breaches Survey found only 24% of businesses using or considering AI had security practices specifically for AI-related risks, while 31% had no plans to introduce them.
Technical Details
- The risk described is staff using unapproved free AI tools, which can lead to business data leakage.
- Thomas notes that data scattered across many folders and SharePoint sites should be consolidated and categorised before AI is deployed.
- ONS data cited: about 35% of UK firms with 10 or more employees used at least one AI technology in 2026, up from about 12% in late 2023.
Remediation
- Establish an AI policy that lists approved tools and defines acceptable use.
- Review how business data is organised and accessed before expanding AI adoption.
- Start with a simple, measurable use case on a process staff know well.
- Welsh employers may be eligible for a 75% contribution to approved AI training costs under the Flexible Skills Programme AI pilot, scheduled to run until the end of March 2027.