Report: AI Expands Corporate 'Shadow IT'
What happened
A new benchmark report from SaaS management platform Torii finds that the proliferation of AI tools is accelerating SaaS sprawl and expanding 'shadow IT' within companies. According to the report, 61% of applications are unmanaged, increasing governance and security risks as employees adopt new AI-powered tools without official oversight.
Why it matters
- The scope of unmanaged AI adoption is significant, with studies showing 73% of employees use AI tools without IT approval, leading to a 3.2x increase in AI-related data incidents since 2024. One analysis found that 11% of content employees copy into public AI tools like ChatGPT is confidential. - New York City's AI startup scene is a major growth area, with local companies raising $1.5 billion across 81 deals in Q1 2025 alone. The number of active AI jobs in NYC has seen an 87% year-over-year increase, with companies like Hebbia (AI for finance) and EliseAI (conversational AI for real estate) hiring for engineering roles. - For those interested in vertical SaaS, the NYC ecosystem consists of nearly 2,200 companies that have collectively raised $29.6 billion in venture capital. Examples of startups tackling specific industries include Playground, which builds management software for childcare centers, and Agora RE, a platform for real estate investment firms. - Indie hackers are successfully building businesses around AI agents; a study tracking 89 builders using one agent framework found that 67% were generating revenue. A profitable model involves offering "setup-
Key numbers
- According to the report, 61% of applications are unmanaged, increasing governance and security risks as employees adopt new AI-powered tools without official oversight.
- - The scope of unmanaged AI adoption is significant, with studies showing 73% of employees use AI tools without IT approval, leading to a 3.2x increase in AI-related data incidents since 2024.
- One analysis found that 11% of content employees copy into public AI tools like ChatGPT is confidential.
- New York City's AI startup scene is a major growth area, with local companies raising $1.5 billion across 81 deals in Q1 2025 alone.
Quick answers
What happened in Report: AI Expands Corporate 'Shadow IT'?
A new benchmark report from SaaS management platform Torii finds that the proliferation of AI tools is accelerating SaaS sprawl and expanding 'shadow IT' within companies. According to the report, 61% of applications are unmanaged, increasing governance and security risks as employees adopt new AI-powered tools without official oversight.
Why does Report: AI Expands Corporate 'Shadow IT' matter?
The scope of unmanaged AI adoption is significant, with studies showing 73% of employees use AI tools without IT approval, leading to a 3.2x increase in AI-related data incidents since 2024. One analysis found that 11% of content employees copy into public AI tools like ChatGPT is confidential. New York City's AI startup scene is a major growth area, with local companies raising $1.5 billion across 81 deals in Q1 2025 alone. The number of active AI jobs in NYC has seen an 87% year-over-year increase, with companies like Hebbia (AI for finance) and EliseAI (conversational AI for real estate) hiring for engineering roles. For those interested in vertical SaaS, the NYC ecosystem consists of nearly 2,200 companies that have collectively raised $29.6 billion in venture capital. Examples of startups tackling specific industries include Playground, which builds management software for childcare centers, and Agora RE, a platform for real estate investment firms. Indie hackers are successfully building businesses around AI agents; a study tracking 89 builders using one agent framework found that 67% were generating revenue. A profitable model involves offering "setup-
