Why Security, Privacy, and Governance are the future for data ICs
We've been here before
Is it possible for us to image a world where 90% of “Data Engineers” as they exist today are not building pipelines, orchestrations, and configurations?
My theory: AI Governance and Cybersecurity (read: Data Privacy) are the fields that are poised for the biggest growth and will see our current data engineers, scientists, and analysts shift more into these roles.
It seems each day, as more people come out and say they don’t write code anymore, that this type of transition becomes more realistic. The thought being we could potentially be removed from the code writing altogether seems to be a frightening possibility for many.
I venture to say that the code writing was never the important part, once you got past the basics of not writing shit code. Rather, the series of decisions we make before we write a line of code are much more telling than the code itself.
That means, finding different places to plug in our skills and capabilities. Being data aware and “data-driven” are great dispositions, now we need to take a step deeper. If we aren’t writing the code, what are doing? We are spending more time on designing systems (so, Systems Design another great path) and ensuring the resulting code/programs **actually do what they’re supposed to do**, and as always, protecting our companies (or ourselves) from lawsuits.
This is why, a few years ago, I recommended to my wife she pursue Cybersecurity (her LinkedIn). As a lawyer in Mexico for the State of Aguascalientes, she had the training to understand how complex legal systems tie together. Now, she’s been learning the important parts of networks, cryptography, math, programming, and other pieces.
We had been deciding between doing Data Science, Web Dev, or something similar. In hindsight, CySec was the only right path, but we wanted to make sure we considered all the options. That was 2023. Now in 2026, this decision absolutely was the right path.
As AI proves it’s not going anywhere, it’s not in a bubble (hot take?), and we’re seeing adoption across the board, we **have** to realize where we are going to be strategically positioned to utilize these tools.
For myself, this means beginning to dive into IAPP CIPP and stitching AI Agents from different tools like CrewAI, LangGraph, and Python. It’s going to be important to understand where we expose ourselves during the process of utilizing AI in different industries. I’m early on in my process as well. But I am 100% convinced this is where we go. Everyone will need to find their own path during this process and where they fit in to this picture. Even if we aren’t 100% only “AI Governance Engineers”, we are “Data Engineers” who understand the legal implications and governance risks of the systems we design to let AI build.
Peace and love,
Sam
PS: I am here to say that I do not believe anyone worth the air they breathe is at risk of losing their career. Maybe a job, but that company has their priorities misaligned and will see its own downfall soon enough. For those of us that are really in this for the long haul, we will adapt as we always have.