AI-powered security: Strengthening the endpoint in a changing enterprise landscape

The rapid proliferation of AI-enabled applications is reshaping how enterprises operate and employees accomplish their work. However, this transformation also introduces a new frontier of security challenges, demanding a comprehensive and proactive approach from IT and security leaders. In a new sponsored CyberScoop podcast, security executives from Lenovo and SentinelOne discuss how this evolving landscape requires organizations to secure AI across their entire technology stack, including employee computers and devices.

Nima Baiati, Executive Director and General Manager for Cybersecurity Solutions at Lenovo, says the unprecedented pace of AI’s advancement, which sees capabilities doubling every 5 to 12 months, compels organizations to re-evaluate their business models, expedite processes and enhance security. “Customers are looking at AI from the standpoint of speeding up things like software development, especially in the areas of QA; they’re looking at it in ways of, how do I better secure my organization, especially when I have a distributed workforce?” he says.

Melissa K. Smith, Vice President of Technology Partnerships and Strategic Initiatives at SentinelOne, echoed this sentiment, highlighting that the future of cybersecurity is “really AI-powered.” Smith also stressed SentinelOne’s commitment to embedding AI into every layer of the security stack, aiming to make security operations “radically faster and more scalable, especially as teams deal with increasingly complex threats in larger environments where they have to do more with less.”

A critical, yet often overlooked, aspect of AI security is the endpoint itself: the personal computer or laptop. “What we saw in the pandemic, outside of this distributed workforce, is we really started to come to grips with the fact that the endpoint is the new network. Anywhere where data resides is your network,” says Baiati.

With critical files and intellectual property increasingly residing on devices, securing the endpoint is paramount. Lenovo AI PCs, for instance, offer the advantage of running many AI models locally, enhancing speed and agility for both users and security. Baiati also outlined a multi-layered security approach, spanning supply chain security, below-OS protections like BIOS security and firmware resiliency and above-OS solutions like data encryption and identity management.

This is where the strategic partnership between Lenovo and SentinelOne comes into play. “The endpoint is still table stakes, right? It’s still the bullseye,” says Smith, adding that PCs and laptops are the “most targeted and under-protected part of the enterprise.”  Knowing this gap, she highlights the benefit of Lenovo PCs being pre-installed with SentinelOne’s Singularity platform, including Purple AI capabilities. “It really gives those SOC analysts the ability to monitor and protect those endpoints of the box,” says Smith.

Ultimately, the collaboration provides customers with comprehensive, end-to-end coverage, from supply chain integrity to endpoint protection. Baiati emphasized that this partnership combines “best-in-breed commercial endpoints” with “best-in-breed cybersecurity capabilities,” positioning organizations to protect themselves today and mitigate risk in a rapidly evolving threat landscape.

Looking ahead, both organizations are committed to the concept of “secure by design,” integrating security into every stage of technological and platform development. Additionally, as AI continues to usher in significant changes, the deepening of third-party integrations and the continuous evolution of combined offerings will be critical. “Cybersecurity is now a board-level conversation, and it is about simplifying it,” says Smith. “And we have to go about it with these relationships and partnerships that do bring the world of both technologies together.”

Listen to the entire podcast conversation now.  

This podcast was produced by Scoop News Group for CyberScoop and underwritten by Lenovo and SentinelOne.