Is Your Board Governing AI Use or Simply Allowing It to Happen?

The 2026 BDO Board Survey findings show that 51% of public company board members indicate that keeping pace with AI and emerging technology will be the most significant challenge in adapting change over the next year. AI is already influencing how directors prepare, analyze information, and engage in board discussions. As adoption accelerates, boards should consider whether AI use is occurring within a clear governance framework or developing informally without sufficient visibility, safeguards, and accountability. 

The following questions can help boards evaluate whether they are positioned to capture AI’s potential value while protecting sensitive information and preserving independent judgment.

Boards should consider:

1. Visibility: Does the board understand which AI tools directors are using, for what purposes, with what types of information, and under whose authorization?
2. Value: What type of AI tools and use cases can help directors prepare more effectively, analyze information more thoroughly, and strengthen board oversight?
3. Risk: Could directors be exposing confidential, privileged, personal, or proprietary information; create unintended records; or rely on inaccurate, biased, incomplete, or inadequately sourced outputs?
4. Guardrails: Have we established board-specific guidance/policy covering approved tools, data handling, prohibited uses, output verification, disclosure of material AI assistance, record retention, and escalation when concerns arise?
5. Judgment: Are directors using AI to inform their thinking rather than replace skepticism, constructive challenge, and independent judgment?
6. Accountability: Who is responsible for overseeing board-level AI use, equipping directors to use approved tools appropriately, responding to incidents or misuse, and updating governance practices as technologies and risks evolve?

Board Pulse: AI in the Boardroom: High Adoption, Limited Governance

Source: Diligent Director Confidence Index June 2026: Board AI Use Rises