Agentic Security Series: How Much Authority Should We Give AI? (Part 2 of 6)
How Much Authority Should We Give AI?
Just because AI can do something, should we allow it to?
In Part 1 of this series, I introduced Agentic AI and discussed how AI Agents are moving beyond simply answering questions. They can now access information, interact with business applications, perform work, and take action on our behalf. The technology is impressive, the opportunities are significant, and the potential benefits are undeniable. As organizations continue adopting AI at a rapid pace, an important question is beginning to emerge: How much authority should we be willing to give these systems?
There is no question that AI offers tremendous benefits. It can summarize information in seconds, analyze large amounts of data, automate repetitive tasks, identify patterns, improve customer service, draft communications, and help employees become more productive. For many organizations, AI may become one of the most valuable productivity tools ever introduced into the workplace. I use AI regularly, many of my clients are exploring ways to use it more effectively, and I genuinely believe the technology has enormous potential.
The challenge is that productivity and authority are not the same thing.
Most people are comfortable allowing AI to schedule meetings, summarize reports, organize information, draft emails, and automate routine tasks. The conversation becomes much more interesting when we start talking about decisions. Should AI approve expenses, make hiring recommendations, authorize financial transactions, approve loans, or provide medical diagnoses and treatment recommendations that could directly impact a person's health and well-being? The answers are not nearly as straightforward.
What makes this discussion difficult is that AI may eventually perform some of these tasks faster, more consistently, and in some situations more accurately than humans. That naturally leads people to ask whether AI should be allowed to make more decisions on its own.
I believe that question misses an important point. The issue is not whether AI can make decisions. The issue is deciding which decisions should remain human, and for how long.
Technology has a history of gradually taking over tasks that were once considered uniquely human. What begins as assistance often evolves into automation. What starts as a recommendation can eventually become a decision. That raises an uncomfortable question:
Are we deciding where the line should be today, or are we simply delaying the day when AI crosses it completely?
When I think about this topic, I often compare it to driving my SUV. Like many newer vehicles, it has lane assist, adaptive cruise control, and several other technologies designed to help me drive safely. The technology is impressive and, quite honestly, it works very well.
Even so, I don't climb into the back seat and let the vehicle take over. Although if my wife were driving, she might be perfectly happy to move to the back seat and take a nap. That's probably a conversation for another day. The real question is always the same: How much control am I willing to give the technology, and for how long?
There are moments when I trust it to help keep the vehicle centered in the lane or maintain a safe distance from the car in front of me. At the same time, my hands remain close to the steering wheel, my eyes stay on the road, and I'm prepared to take control if necessary. I think AI presents a very similar challenge.
Most organizations are comfortable allowing AI to assist with tasks, summarize information, draft emails, analyze data, and automate repetitive work. But as AI becomes more capable, we need to ask ourselves a different question: When do we stop giving it authority? At what point do we decide a decision is too important, too sensitive, or too impactful to be left entirely to a machine?
Just because AI can perform a task doesn't automatically mean it should be trusted to make the final decision without human involvement. Like the technology in my SUV, AI can be an incredibly valuable tool, but ultimately someone still needs to remain responsible for the outcome.
As the owner of a computer training company, I've spent more than 30 years helping organizations understand and adapt to new technologies. One thing I have learned is that technology always advances faster than our understanding of its implications. That is especially true with AI. While many discussions focus on what AI is capable of doing, I believe organizations should spend more time discussing what AI should be allowed to do and where boundaries need to be established.
The future of AI is not simply about building smarter systems. It is about deciding how much authority we are willing to give those systems and determining where human judgment should remain part of the process. Organizations that answer those questions thoughtfully will be in a much better position to realize the benefits of AI while avoiding unnecessary risks.
So, I'll leave you with this question: How much authority are you comfortable giving AI today, and where would you draw the line? Would you trust AI to make important decisions about your finances, your healthcare, your career, or your business without human oversight?
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
FranklyTECH
Technology Examined Frankly.
By Frank Pannacchione - President
Metropolitan Computer Services, Inc.
Next Week in The Agentic Security Series (Part 3 of 6)
Human-In-The-Loop: Why Human Judgment Still Matters in an AI World
As AI becomes more capable, many organizations are asking whether human involvement is still necessary. Should AI be trusted to make important decisions on its own, or should a person remain involved at key points in the process?
Next week, we'll explore the concept of “Human-In-The-Loop”, where AI can assist, recommend, and automate, but human judgment remains the final checkpoint before important decisions are made.
Because sometimes the most important question isn't what AI can do. It's whether a human should still have the final say.
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