Baby Tigers Bite - The Hidden Risks Of Scaling AI Too Fast
Palo Alto Networks, Tuesday, June 17th, 2025
In a recent episode of the Threat Vector podcast, host David Moulton chatted with Noelle Russell, founder and chief AI officer at the AI Leadership Institute. She shared a powerful metaphor for artificial intelligence implementation that every security professional should heed: the "baby tiger."
As Russell explains, organizations often begin their AI journeys with an adorable, novel model that excites everyone. Teams gather around this cute innovation, marveling at its capabilities without asking the critical questions: How large will it grow? What will it eat? Where will it live? What happens when you don't want it anymore?
The reality is stark - baby tigers become adult tigers, and adult tigers can be dangerous. As AI systems scale from prototypes to production environments, the risks scale with them. Without proper guardrails, governance and security measures, what begins as an exciting innovation can quickly become an organizational liability. When your organization adopts AI, are you planning for the cute baby tiger or preparing for the full-grown predator it will inevitably become?