Global Scans · Trust · Weekly Summary

WHAT'S NEXT?: Trust in politicians and experts is falling fast. Privacy is under threat and may lead to a collapse of confidence in technology as the world is increasingly networked. Unless reliability, integrity, and surety can keep pace with accelerating change trust in anything but oneself may disappear.

• [New] Confidence in that trajectory is feeding directly back into budgets, with 86% of organizations planning to increase AI spending in 2026 and nearly 40% expecting increases of 10% or more. AI Insider
• [New] Deloitte's 2026 CFO Signals survey reports a sharp rise in CFO confidence and AI use, and 87% of CFOs say AI will be extremely or very important to their finance operations in 2026. Prime AI Solutions
• [New] In 2026, best-in-class programs combine authoritative vulnerability data, exploit intelligence, automation, and validation-supported by tools that engineers trust and actually use. Penligent Security Blog - AI-Driven Hacking Tutorials,
• [New] The brands that win in 2026 will be the ones who combine strong storytelling with smart strategy: using video not just to entertain, but to educate, inspire, and build trust. Reflect Digital
• [New] EU's BCI regulation emphasizes the supremacy of human rights; it issues legislation to establish a series of rights to protect users' psychological integrity, freedom of thought and neural data rights, thus achieving comprehensive control of medical BCI risks. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] For the Burnham bounce to be sustainable and boost consumer confidence, it will require consistent delivery by the refreshed UK government against deep cost-of-living challenges and persistent low economic growth. NIQ
• [New] Loss of confidence could undermine the NHS's wider push to make better use of patient data across the health service. theregister
• [New] South Texas contractors who treat economic intelligence as routine - alongside safety metrics and financial statements - will navigate the next decade's cycles with greater confidence and stability. ABC South Texas
• [New] Agentic shopping adoption will increase from 19% in 2025 to 46% by the end of 2026 - a massive shift in how much consumers trust machines to shop for them. Airwallex
• [New] By implementing robust AML compliance measures, organizations can mitigate the risks associated with financial crimes, protect their reputations, and contribute to the overall integrity of the global financial system. Financial Crime Academy
• [New] The potential for further military action seems to have decreased confidence in the inclusion of Iran Reconstruction Funding in any forthcoming agreement. Crypto Briefing
• [New] Levels of trust were low: the Hopes and Fears survey found that just half of industrial manufacturing workers above entry level said they trust their managers, and just 42% trusted top leadership-both markedly worse than global averages. PwC
• [New] The gap between the volume of AI content being produced and the disclosure rate is the most significant trust risk for brands in 2026. AI Business Weekly
• [New] While reciprocal trust between sovereign nations remains complex, growing collaboration around international standards and bilateral agreements will enable digital travel credentials to scale globally. BiometricUpdate.com
• [New] The rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence and new technology brings great opportunities as well as large, overlapping risks to the UK's economy, jobs, and social trust. GOV.UK
• [New] Just 1% of Australians say they have complete trust that AI will be used responsibly. iStart keeping business informed on technology
• [New] M&A activity is expected to lift in the second half of 2026 as confidence returns, PE firms push for exits, and corporates pursue inorganic growth. Bellrock
• The collapse of trust in institutions after a pandemic could last over a generation as it happened before with the Spanish flu, so that it will be crucial to identify tailored interventions for each less trusting population. PubMed Central (PMC)
• Communications that could be perceived as excessive political intervention in the Bank of Japan's policy decisions should be approached with caution, from the perspective of central bank independence and market's trust. QUICKOur Knowledge, Your Value.
• Marketers will need to balance personalized experiences with maintaining consumer trust, ensuring that data is used transparently and securely SAS. Enrich Labs
• Because fraud remains a principal predicate offense for money laundering, financial institutions can expect greater reliance on BSA reporting, transaction monitoring, and financial intelligence to identify, trace, and recover criminal proceeds. Gibson Dunn

Last updated: 10 August 2026