Analyst Research

Gartner® Hype Cycle™ for AI and Cybersecurity

The AI & Cybersecurity Landscape
Is Shifting Fast

Malicious actors are already weaponizing AI across the full attack chain, from AI-generated phishing emails that mimic writing styles and bypass filters, to deepfake audio and video, to automated vulnerability discovery that lets attackers find and exploit weaknesses faster than security teams can patch them. In response, organizations must build security practices that go beyond point-in-time defenses.

Gartner® has published its first-ever Hype Cycle™ for AI and Cybersecurity. We believe this report is essential reading for every security leader navigating AI-driven threats and investment decisions in 2025 and beyond.

Access the full research

What's Inside

Four Themes Gartner Identifies for CISOs

AI Literacy Is No Longer Optional

Security leaders who lack sufficient AI literacy risk wasteful investments and blind spots around emerging attack surfaces‚ from prompt injection to "agent washing."
Expectations for AI in Cybersecurity Are Peaking

The rush to market AI SOC agents and autonomous workflows is creating inflated expectations. Proven techniques like ML-based anomaly detection still deliver more reliable value today.
Specialized AI Security Tools Are Emerging

AI governance platforms, AI usage control, AI runtime defense, and AI security testing represent a new category of tooling that security teams need to evaluate and plan for.

Three Predictions That Should Shape Your Strategy

By 2027

90% of successful AI implementation in cybersecurity will be tactical — task automation and process augmentations — rather than role-replacing.
Through 2029

Over 50% of successful cybersecurity attacks against AI agents will exploit access control issues, using direct or indirect prompt injection as an attack vector.
By 2030

Half of enterprises will face irreversible skill shortages in at least two critical job roles due to GenAI accuracy decline, skill erosion and uncompetitive pay.

What the Report Covers

The Gartner Hype Cycle‚ for AI and Cybersecurity, 2025, maps more than 25 emerging technologies against their maturity and time-to-mainstream adoption‚ helping security leaders cut through "AI washing" and focus investment where it counts.

To us, this research represents a critical compass for any organization facing the dual mandate of adopting AI-driven tools while defending against AI-powered threats.

Why We're Sharing This Research

The intersection of AI and cybersecurity is moving faster than most organizations can track — and the noise is making it harder to make confident decisions. We're sharing this Gartner research because our partners and customers deserve a clear-eyed view of what's hype, what's real, and where the market is headed. Our goal is to help you cut through the confusion and invest in capabilities that will serve your organization without adding distractions, cost, and complexity.

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