Amer Iqbal Featured in the Financial Times on the Rise of AI Assurance
Amer Iqbal has been featured in the Financial Times in a major article examining the rapid emergence of AI assurance — the new wave of services designed to evaluate the transparency, governance and risk profile of enterprise AI systems.
The piece explores how the Big Four and other professional services firms are rolling out AI audit capabilities in response to rising pressure from investors, regulators and boards. As organisations accelerate their adoption of large-scale AI tools, the demand for clarity and accountability has grown just as quickly.
Amer was invited to comment on the deeper structural questions boards should be asking before engaging any external provider. In particular, he highlighted the tension created when traditional audit firms expand into AI oversight without addressing long-standing issues around independence and transparency.
“Big Four firms have always had a tension between independence and client service,” Amer noted. “Extending that model to AI means boards need to ask whether they are buying true accountability or simply a ‘rubber stamp’ of approval.”
He also pointed out a practical limitation of many current offerings. A significant portion of enterprise AI today is powered by proprietary “black box” models from big tech providers — systems that external auditors rarely have the ability to fully examine.
“External auditors can only really comment on implementation and governance, not on how the AI itself thinks or behaves,” he said. “This seriously limits the effectiveness of any kind of external audit.”
Even as new assurance services emerge, organisations cannot outsource understanding. Leaders must stay engaged, ask sharper questions, and tap into the expertise already present across their own teams.
The full Financial Times piece provides timely insight into a rapidly evolving space and the new responsibilities now facing boards as AI becomes embedded in every corner of the enterprise.
Read the full piece in Financial Times Agenda Week:
AI Assurance Aims to Tackle Rising Board Demands for Transparency
by Anna Bianca Roach
