Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant concept or an emerging curiosity. It is reshaping industries, redefining work, and altering how organizations manage risk. Over the past five years, we have moved from the generative phase of AI, characterized by tools that produce text, code, and analysis, to the agentic phase, where AI systems increasingly act autonomously, execute tasks, and make decisions within defined parameters.

Yet many internal auditors remain spectators, and that reality should concern us.

A recent Optro survey reveals a profession still approaching AI cautiously. Only 25 percent of internal auditors report actively using AI tools in their work. Another 52 percent say they are experimenting or piloting AI capabilities. Meanwhile, 17 percent expect to begin using AI in the next 12 to 24 months, and 12 percent say they have no plans to use AI at all.

In other words, most of the profession is still testing the waters while the tide rises.

When asked why adoption remains limited, respondents cited two familiar explanations. First, lack of expertise. Second, lack of understanding of AI’s capabilities. These concerns are understandable. Artificial intelligence evolves rapidly. The tools are new. The learning curve can feel steep.

But there is a troubling paradox. While many internal auditors remain hesitant to embrace AI, chief audit executives consistently identify the inability to leverage AI to drive internal audit efficiency and productivity as the number one strategic risk facing the profession over the next five years.

Think about that contradiction. We recognize the risk, yet we hesitate to act.

The Most Transformational Era in History

The AI era promises to be the most transformational period in the history of the internal audit profession. No previous technology has the potential to reshape the nature of our work and how we perform it so profoundly.

Artificial intelligence can analyze entire data populations in seconds. It can detect patterns across millions of transactions. It can identify anomalies that human internal auditors might never see. It can monitor risk signals continuously.

In short, AI can perform many of the traditional assurance activities that have defined internal auditing for decades. This does not mean internal auditors will become obsolete. It does mean our role will change, and that change must be intentional.

If we approach the AI era strategically, technology will elevate the profession. If we approach it passively, it may redefine the profession without us.

From Assurers to Advisors

For decades, our primary mission centered on assurance. We assessed controls. We verified compliance. We reported findings. Those responsibilities remain important. But the AI era demands more. To thrive, we must begin the inevitable transformation from assurers to advisors.

Artificial intelligence will increasingly perform the analytical work required for assurance. AI systems will test transactions, monitor controls, and flag anomalies. Those systems will likely deliver assurance faster and more comprehensively than our traditional approaches. Our role must shift toward interpretation and insight.

Management and boards will need professionals who can explain what AI findings mean, how risks are evolving, and what actions leaders should take.

The internal auditor of the future must help organizations understand risk, not simply confirm it exists.

From Hindsight to Foresight

Historically, internal auditors have kept their eyes largely on the rearview mirror. We reviewed past transactions. We analyzed events that already occurred. We explained what went wrong.

Artificial intelligence creates the opportunity to move beyond hindsight.

With advanced analytics and machine learning, we can begin identifying emerging risks and anticipating potential failures before they occur.

The profession must evolve from purveyors of hindsight to beacons of foresight. Organizations do not simply need confirmation that yesterday’s controls worked. They need insight into tomorrow’s risks. We are uniquely positioned to provide that perspective if we embrace the technology that makes it possible.

From Protecting Value to Creating It

Internal auditors have long been viewed as guardians of value. Our job has been to protect assets, ensure compliance, and prevent losses. Those responsibilities remain essential. But the AI era presents a new opportunity.

Internal auditors can help organizations create value by identifying opportunities to improve processes, strengthen decision making, and anticipate disruption. When internal audit combines deep organizational knowledge with powerful analytics, we can become a valuable source of strategic insight.

The profession must evolve from value protectors to value creators.

AI May Deliver Assurance

There is another reality we must acknowledge. AI will likely become a primary provider of assurance. Algorithms will monitor transactions. Intelligent systems will assess controls. Automated analytics will detect anomalies. Ideally, these capabilities will operate under the watchful eyes of internal auditors.

But the implication is clear. If machines perform much of the assurance work, we must excel in areas where human judgment matters most. We must excel as advisors. We must provide context, interpretation, and perspective that machines cannot replicate.

Talent Strategy Must Be Our GPS

None of this transformation will occur without deliberate changes in how internal audit develops its people. Future talent management strategies must serve as our GPS, guiding the profession from where it is today to where it must be tomorrow. Internal audit functions must begin prioritizing new capabilities.

Recruiting strategies may also need to evolve. Tomorrow’s audit teams may include professionals with backgrounds in data science, technology, and behavioral risk analysis alongside traditional internal auditors. Organizations that fail to rethink talent strategy risk falling behind.

Despite the rise of artificial intelligence, the future of internal auditing will remain fundamentally human. Machines excel at processing data. They excel at pattern recognition. They excel at speed. But machines cannot replicate the uniquely human capabilities that define outstanding internal auditors.

I often refer to these as our superpowers.

They include:

• intellectual curiosity
• critical thinking
• professional skepticism
• relationship acumen
• communication and storytelling
• ethical resilience
• foresight and imagination

These capabilities enable internal auditors to interpret risk signals, influence leaders, and guide organizations through uncertainty. Artificial intelligence will amplify these human strengths. But only if we use it.

A Call to Action

The internal audit profession stands at a pivotal moment. The AI era will move forward regardless of whether internal auditors embrace it. The question is not whether AI will shape the future of internal auditing. The question is whether internal auditors will help shape that future.

We must get off the sidelines. We must experiment, learn, and invest in new capabilities. We must rethink how we develop talent. We must leverage technology to elevate the value we deliver. Most importantly, we must deploy our human superpowers to ensure that internal audit remains a trusted source of insight and foresight.

The race for relevance in the AI era has already begun. It is time for internal auditors to run it strategically.