Microsoft named an overall leader in KuppingerCole Leadership Compass for Generative AI Defense

According to KuppingerCole Leadership Compass for Generative AI Defense (GAD), Microsoft has been named an overall leader in the independent report. The evaluation places Microsoft as the top Overall Leader, with other vendors such as Palo Alto Networks, Cisco, F5, NeuralTrust, and IBM positioned as challengers or followers.

Microsoft describes its Generative AI Defense approach as embedding security across AI apps, agents, platforms and infrastructure, delivering visibility, protection and governance across the full AI stack. The company highlights identity-first controls, including Entra Agent ID, real-time DLP and classification via Purview, and runtime protection and posture management through Defender, plus compliance support for EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF and ISO 42001.

Foundational security is also embedded in Microsoft 365 Copilot and Foundry, with integrated identity controls, data safeguards, threat protection and governance from the start. The update was posted on 15 December 2025.