After tracking the worldwide cybersecurity skills shortage for years through its annual studies, ISC2 announced on October 20 the creation of its Cyber-AI Workforce Coalition to actively shape how the profession adapts to artificial intelligence. The initiative marks one of the first major moves by Scott Beale, who became the nonprofit's CEO in December 2025, and responds directly to member demand for the organization to take a stronger stance on AI safety and security issues. During the ISC2 Security Congress 2026 in Denver, Colorado, Beale told Infosecurity that most members want the group to "more ambitiously and vocally step into the AI safety and security space."

The coalition will bring together cybersecurity thought leaders including HR managers and chief information security officers, along with major employers of security practitioners, standard-setting organizations, and government officials to examine how artificial intelligence is reshaping cybersecurity roles. According to Beale, companies still lack resources for effectively advertising and filling these positions even as the US National Institute of Standards and Technology and other bodies update their standards and frameworks. He noted that how a bank describes these positions remains vastly different from how a hospital would approach the same task. Uncertainty persists around how AI will influence future demand for cybersecurity workers, which capabilities will prove most essential for AI security positions, and how seasoned practitioners can develop skills to meet new requirements.

Rather than creating new standards or frameworks, the coalition will focus on producing toolkits for employers to describe emerging job roles where AI and cybersecurity intersect. These resources will include guidance on hiring, developing, and organizing cybersecurity talent, plus advice for practitioners on identifying and building the expertise employers seek. The toolkits aim to answer three core questions: how cybersecurity jobs are changing, how employers should write job descriptions for these new roles, and how candidates can prepare to interview and fill these positions. Beale acknowledged that ISC2's upcoming AI security certification will help define some of these new roles but emphasized the organization doesn't claim to have the only solution.

The coalition holds its first meeting in November and Beale hopes to deliver initial toolkits by spring 2027, with some companies using them in a pilot phase to hire AI security professionals. The tools will eventually be available to everyone, not just ISC2 members, and Beale believes universities and certification bodies will find them useful for adapting their curriculums. The initiative positions ISC2 as what Beale called a "vendor-neutral convener" for global cybersecurity professionals navigating the AI era. Organizations across sectors now face the challenge of defining roles that didn't exist a few years ago, and the coalition aims to provide practical answers that can keep pace with rapid technological change. The broader industry still grapples with whether artificial intelligence will expand or contract the cybersecurity workforce, making standardized approaches to talent development particularly urgent.