Robert Smallwood, Chair, Certified Information Governance Officers Association
AI Governance Playbook cover
AI Governance Playbook Authors Recommend an Information Governance-forward approach to AI Governance, leveraging proven principles, models, and Best Practices
AI is bolted on top of the old operating model. And then leaders wonder why the ROI isn't showing up. The tools are not the bottleneck. The structure underneath is.”— Chris Surdak
LAS VEGAS, NV, UNITED STATES, July 23, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — The AI Governance World Conference, a top-tier worldwide gathering dedicated to the ethical, practical, and forward-looking management and oversight of artificial intelligence (AI), will bring together leaders from law, commerce, technology, and policy in Las Vegas from October 12–14, 2026 at the historic Flamingo Hotel. This year’s central theme—AI Governance at Work—highlights the pressing necessity for structures that ensure AI technologies, particularly agentic AI, deliver favorable business results for both organizations and society.
A major attraction of the conference will be presentations delivered by the authors of, "The AI Governance Playbook: How to Secure, Control, and Optimize Artificial Intelligence Initiatives," Robert Smallwood, MBA, CIGO®, CIGO/AI, a globally recognized authority and thought leader in Information Governance (IG), and Chris Surdak J.D., CEO & Founder of ReLeaf Financial, a startup providing AI trust software. The book argues that AI Governance should utilize Information Governance’s established principles, models, and Best Practices rather than constructing a separate governance framework for AI, and that core functional groups identified in the Information Governance Reference Model (IGRM) must perform essential duties throughout the AI software lifecycle.
Smallwood stands as the world’s foremost author, researcher, and trainer in Information Governance. He founded InfoGov World Magazine and serves as Chair of the Certified Information Governance Officers Association (CIGOA). He developed the CIGO/AI and CIGO/AI-A curriculums and certifications, and his approaches have been employed by Fortune 500 enterprises and AmLaw100 law firms to establish governance guardrails aimed at responsible and ethical AI. With over forty years of experience, he has penned eight books on IG, including the foundational industry-standard Information Governance: Concepts, Strategies, and Best Practices (Wiley, 2014/2020).
Christopher Surdak, J.D. is an award-winning author, technology strategist, innovator, and worldwide specialist in digital transformation, data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and information governance. Spanning more than three decades, his career moved from engineering spacecraft (as a rocket scientist) to steering Fortune 500 corporations, tech startups, and government bodies through the challenges of the digital age. His books include "Data Crush: How the Information Tidal Wave is Driving New Business Opportunities" (2014), named Abstract’s International Book of the Year in 2014; "Jerk: Twelve Steps to Rule the World" (2016), a strategic examination of disruption and organizational design; "The Care and Feeding of Bots," centered on Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and software automation tools.
Both sessions will reveal insights from, “The AI Governance Playbook” (Bloomsbury, 2026), a practical manual for managers, policymakers, attorneys, and risk and governance professionals navigating the quickly shifting AI landscape. The talks will explore tactics for reducing algorithmic bias, implementing AI governance frameworks on a large scale, and harmonizing compliance with innovation.
Surdak holds a patent for a method that guarantees AI trust. He contends that the next significant legal battlefield is not solely data privacy, but Human Authorization. When an autonomous AI agent executes a transaction, signs a digital workflow, or transfers data, who bears legal responsibility for that action? To tackle this multi-billion dollar liability gap, Surdak invented a platform called Proof of Intent (securing U.S. Patent 12,505,416). It constructs a legal and technical "Trust Stack" intended to explicitly tie human intent to machine actions, preventing companies from asserting "the AI did it without permission" when automated mistakes or agentic fraud arise.
Surdak believes the reason most AI pilots have not been operationalized to yield results is, "AI is bolted on top of the old operating model. And then leaders wonder why the ROI isn't showing up. The tools are not the bottleneck. The structure underneath is."
“AI can not only greatly accelerate and improve your business, with agentic AI, it can also ruin it,” said Smallwood. “Information Governance-based AI Governance is essential for agentic AI readiness. If organizations don’t establish clear accountability, ethical guardrails, and sustainable governance programs, they risk falling behind both regulators and their competition. But they then need to go beyond that to set limits on agents and to ensure that sandbox testing is truly secure."
The three-day event will feature over 50 international speakers, including executives from OpenAI, Mars, Google, Cisco, DoorDash, United States Space Force, and prominent law firms like Foley & Lardner, Clarion AI Partners, DLA Piper, and Baker Hostetler, who will offer actionable approaches on subjects ranging from:
• Agentic AI governance challenges and new approaches
• AI governance frameworks and compliance with the EU AI Act and NIST AI Risk Management Framework
• Responsible innovation and mitigating algorithmic bias
• AI risk management in healthcare, financial services, cybersecurity, and defense
• Building trust and transparency between enterprises, regulators, and consumers
About AI Governance World Conference
The AI Governance World Conference 2026 is a leading international event focused on AI Governance and AI Readiness, uniting policymakers, technologists, and executives to examine the convergence of AI, data governance, law, privacy and cybersecurity. Held annually and hosted by the Certified Information Governance Officers Association, the conference includes keynotes, an executive forum, AI Governance training, networking receptions and group dinners designed to encourage interaction among attendees and connections with experts.
Robert Smallwood
IG World magazine
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Robert Smallwood
IG World magazine
6194199714 ext.
email us here
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn
