NTT DATA and Palo Alto Networks Join Forces to Accelerate Secure AI Adoption

JAKARTA — Jakartaweekly.com. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly embedded in how companies operate, organizations are facing a new challenge: how to embrace the technology at scale while maintaining security, governance and control. NTT DATA and Palo Alto Networks have announced a multi-year global strategic alliance designed to help organizations securely adopt AI, modernize their cybersecurity infrastructure and build greater resilience against evolving digital threats.

The partnership combines Palo Alto Networks’ AI-powered cybersecurity platforms and Unit 42 threat intelligence with NTT DATA’s consulting, engineering and managed services capabilities. The companies are targeting US$1 billion in joint business by the end of the three-year collaboration period in 2029.

The alliance marks Palo Alto Networks’ first strategic partnership of its kind with a global systems integrator, reflecting the growing need for technology providers and service companies to work more closely as AI transforms both enterprise operations and the cybersecurity landscape.

“AI is reshaping both business and cybersecurity, making deep ecosystem collaboration more important than ever,” said Nikesh Arora, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Palo Alto Networks.

“By expanding our alliance with NTT DATA, we can operationalize platformization at true global scale—helping enterprises reduce legacy complexity, move faster and maintain strong security.”

The partnership comes as companies across industries accelerate their adoption of AI, from automating workflows and improving decision-making to deploying increasingly sophisticated AI agents. However, the same technologies are also changing the nature of cyber threats, creating new risks involving data, digital identities, cloud infrastructure and autonomous systems.

According to the two companies, the alliance is intended to provide enterprises with a more integrated approach to managing these challenges. Rather than treating cybersecurity as a separate layer added after new technologies are deployed, the partnership will combine security strategy, implementation, governance and managed services throughout the AI adoption process.

“AI is redefining every aspect of the enterprise, but it is also transforming the threat landscape at unprecedented speed,” said Abhijit Dubey, Chief Executive Officer and Chief AI Officer of NTT DATA, Inc.

“Organizations need a new approach to cyber resilience that combines AI-driven security, deep industry expertise and global scale.”

The collaboration builds on the companies’ existing work in Frontier AI and brings together Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 threat intelligence with NTT DATA’s cybersecurity expertise, AI governance capabilities and global delivery network.

It will initially focus on some of the most pressing challenges facing organizations in highly regulated and critical industries, including financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and the public sector.

A major focus will be the modernization of Security Operations Centers through the use of agentic AI. The approach is designed to help organizations detect, investigate and respond to increasingly sophisticated cyber threats at greater speed while reducing the complexity of day-to-day security operations.

The alliance will also address the growing importance of AI governance. As companies deploy AI across more functions, questions around accountability, transparency, risk management and human oversight are becoming increasingly important. NTT DATA and Palo Alto Networks aim to embed governance and security throughout the AI lifecycle, helping organizations scale their AI initiatives with stronger controls in place.

Another key area is identity security. As enterprise environments become populated not only by employees and devices but also by machines, automated workloads and AI agents, companies need to rethink how they manage and protect digital identities.

The partnership will also support organizations in strengthening Zero Trust and Secure Access Service Edge architectures, improving cloud security across multi-cloud environments and modernizing firewall infrastructure.

Beyond the technology itself, the alliance is backed by joint engineering and co-innovation. More than 2,000 Palo Alto Networks-certified professionals will support the collaboration alongside dedicated Forward Deployed Engineers and joint investments from both companies. Through direct engineering collaboration, NTT DATA will also gain early access to selected new platform features.

NTT DATA brings significant global cybersecurity resources to the partnership, including more than 7,500 cybersecurity professionals, over 70 delivery centers and more than 20 Cyber Defense Centers worldwide.

Together with Palo Alto Networks’ AI-powered platforms and Unit 42 threat intelligence, the companies aim to help enterprises navigate increasingly complex technology environments without having to choose between innovation and security.

“Together with Palo Alto Networks, we’re bringing AI-powered cybersecurity innovation together with NTT DATA’s consulting, engineering and managed services capabilities to help clients securely accelerate AI adoption and stay ahead of evolving threats,” Dubey said.

As AI continues to reshape business operations, the alliance highlights a broader shift in enterprise technology strategy. The focus is no longer simply on adopting the latest AI tools, but on building the infrastructure, governance and security needed to ensure those technologies can be deployed responsibly and at scale.