In 2027: Year of the Meat Proxies, Richard Penfil imagines a future where AI agents take on an increasing share of internal audit work. At first, AI makes auditors more efficient by collecting evidence, documenting testing and drafting findings. As productivity increases, however, organizations begin cutting staff and giving AI more responsibility.
Eventually, even experienced auditors are reduced to reviewing AI-generated assessments. Expertise is lost, junior auditors receive less supervision, and humans have fewer opportunities to challenge the AI’s conclusions.
Penfil’s story highlights that adopting AI is not only about what AI can do, but also about what human expertise and judgment organizations need to retain.
Richard Penfil will explore the topic further at the IIA Ignite Conference on Nov. 2–3, 2026.