Only 10% of SOCs Say They’re Getting Excellent Value From AI. Here’s What the Second Wave Has to Deliver

This article reviews SOC-CMM 2026 findings that while AI adoption in SOCs has surged, most organizations report limited value because AI has been deployed as isolated features across tools rather than as a connected, agentic fabric; it argues the next wave must integrate AI across detection, hunting, investigation, and remediation with persistent institutional knowledge and governance, and highlights Conifers' CognitiveSOC as an example of this second-wave architecture.