RALEIGH, N.C. On October 6, 2026 / PRNewswire -- The enterprise in the field of security code training and security development education, Security Journey, announced today that its annual Security Champions Summit will be held again. This summit will discuss the ways to participate in the Security Champions program, practical security development, as well as the constantly evolving roles of AI in the security field. The virtual summit will take place from October 15th to 16th. Building on the success of last year's event, it will bring together security leaders, engineers, and project managers to jointly explore how to inspire action and bring about lasting change.
As software development accelerates and AI reshapes the way organizations work, Gartner has found that 81% of CIO believe that gaps in generative AI skills will hinder their ability to achieve business goals. Companies are gradually realizing that getting employees exposed to new technologies is just the first step; long-term success depends on whether they can use these technologies effectively and securely. Security champions have long played a key role in driving such changes within engineering teams, and Security Champions Summit will explore how to apply these principles more broadly to enhance organizational capabilities and support secure AI adoption.
Build sustainable security projects
This two-day summit will explore how enterprises can establish and expand security champion programs that demonstrate measurable impact. On the first day, the focus will be on the practical aspects of running successful champion programs, with a dedicated agenda set for program leaders and security champions, covering topics such as engagement, measurement, secure development, and peer influence.
On the second day, we will discuss how the champion model evolves as AI becomes deeply embedded within the organization. The meeting will explore how companies can adjust their existing projects to support the auxiliary development of AI, and how to extend the champion network from engineering departments to stakeholders such as product, data, legal, compliance, and leadership teams.
" AI is changing too rapidly; companies cannot treat empowerment as a one-time training exercise. Security champions have already proven their ability to influence the behavior of engineering teams and build trust. Applying the same approach to the entire organization is a real opportunity that can enable the entire workforce to acquire capabilities that were previously only available to a few."
Key agenda items and keynote speakers include:
- Michael Novack, DevAltus Chief Engineers - Safety is everyone's job, so why does it feel like it's not the case?
- Michael Burch, Security Journey AI Adoption and Acceleration Vice President - The same champion, new approach: Incorporate AI into your safety champion program.
- Anthony Pipia, Optiv Consulting Senior Application Security Consultants - Security Champions as a Multiplier for SDLC: Improving Security Maturity Without Expanding the Security Team
- Hiral Humal, HH Consulting AI Governance and Risk Experts - Implementing AI Governance: Transforming Responsible AI Policies into Workflows Driven by Champions
- AD Edwards, Center for AI & Cyber Excellence AI - Persons in charge of governance, network security, and risk management. If they can't say no, then why should we be held accountable for them?
- Sabrina Lavi, Thales Security Champion Community Leader - Beyond Participation: Measuring What Security Champions Truly Change
- Kriti Faujdar, Yelp Chief Product Manager - Between Policies and Pull Requests: The AI Champion as a Translator
- Scott Norberg, Opperis Technologies LLC President and Founder - There's Never Enough Time – Lessons Learned from Building Two Security Champion Projects
- Akshay Manchanda, Cisco Systems Engineering Product Manager - Vulnerabilities from 2032. The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.
- Brett Crawley, Mimecast Chief Application Security Engineer - The Role and Limitations of Threat Modeling in Security Champions AI
- Michael Morgensten, DayBlink Consulting partners - and so on, does the champion now also need to learn about identity management?
- Priya Balasubramaniam, Ciena Heads of Product and Application Security Innovation Centers - From Gatekeepers to Accelerators: AI How to Change the Security Culture of Ciena
- Nariman Aga - Tagiyev, SecureHabits Cybersecurity Architect - EU Network Resilience Act: Without compliance, there is no market
- Katelyn Falk, DocuSign Product Security TPM Leader - From Fatigue to Multiplier: Ensuring That Security Champions Truly Continuously Make an Impact
Security Champions Summit Registration is now open. For more information and to register, please visit: https :// www.securityjourney.com / scs-summit2026
About Security Journey
Security Journey is an AI training and capability platform for enterprises, helping organizations build better and safer skills in using AI. With its deep expertise in secure coding training and secure development education, Security Journey has now brought role-based, hands-on AI learning to its entire workforce, ranging from developers who use AI to create software to various business teams that are leveraging AI to transform their work methods. Enterprise leaders can clearly see in which areas skills are improving, where risks are emerging, and which successful AI practices are ready for scaled adoption.
SOURCE Security Journey
