AI is the fourth wave of IT governance — and ITAM has a critical role to play. Eric Chiu makes the case for formalising AI Asset Management.
Speaker
Eric Chiu
Synopsis
IT governance has evolved through three distinct waves - from software piracy policing in the late 1980s, through the professionalisation of SAM and ITAM, to the emergence of FinOps for cloud spend. In this thought-provoking talk, Eric Chiu argues that AI represents a fourth wave: one that is structurally different from anything existing governance disciplines were built to handle alone.
Drawing on converging global definitions from the OECD, the EU AI Act and ISO/IEC 22989, Eric explores why AI resists existing frameworks. Cost is path-dependent rather than provisioning-dependent. Quality and cost decisions are entangled in ways no single discipline fully addresses. The asset boundary itself is unclear - is the asset the model, the prompt, the agent workflow, or the entitlement to an external service? And the physical layer has reasserted itself in new ways, with GPU economics, energy consumption and export controls becoming first-order management concerns alongside a live balance-sheet risk as accounting depreciation diverges from economic reality.
With key EU AI Act obligations taking effect in August 2026 and regulatory pressure mounting across multiple jurisdictions, Eric makes the case that 2026 is the inflection point at which the ITAM community needs to engage. FinOps brings rigour around cost optimisation and unit economics; ITAM brings the fiduciary framing - entitlements to track, obligations to honour, lifecycle to manage, value and risk to balance over time. Both perspectives are needed, and the ITAM community has a distinctive and timely contribution to make.
The talk closes with a call to action: that the BCS and the UK ITAM community take the first steps in formalising AI Asset Management as a defined discipline, with a view to feeding that work into the international standards conversation through the BSI route.
About the speaker
Eric Chiu
Eric is a professional in technology governance with a focus on helping organisations to manage AI and other technology risks, as well as their costs effectively. I’m currently the Managing Partner at General Interfaces, an advisory firm and think tank based in both London and Hong Kong, dedicated to providing practical solutions and policy advice in our field.
Previously, I founded FisherITS, a risk consultancy, and OpenSAM, an IT Asset Intelligence SaaS platform in London. Both businesses were acquired by AnglePoint (now part of SoftwareOne SWX: SWON) in 2022 to accelerate its EMEA growth. This was a rewarding milestone and a testament to the hard work of the teams I was fortunate to lead.
I represent the UK on the ISO 19770-1 working group for IT Asset Management and was a founding committee member of the ITAM Forum. I’ve also had the opportunity to advise CESI (China Electronics Standardisation Institute) on IT asset management, which has given me valuable insights into global approaches to technology governance.
Our events are for adults aged 16 years and over.
This meeting is conducted in accordance with the BCS Code of Conduct for Meetings.
BCS is a membership organisation. If you enjoy this event, please consider joining BCS. You’ll be very welcome. You’ll receive access to many exclusive career development tools, an introduction to a thriving professional community and also help us Make IT Good For Society. Join BCS today
Please note, if you have any accessibility needs, please let us know via groups@bcs.uk, and we’ll work with you to make suitable arrangements.
BCS privacy notice: your data will be processed by BCS in accordance with our data privacy notice.
Photography: by attending this event, you may be photographed or filmed. Please speak to a member of staff if you do not wish to be included.
This event is brought to you by: Service Management and IT Asset Management (SM-ITAM) specialist group
