The uncontrolled rise of external AI tools in the workplace—a phenomenon known as Shadow AI—has evolved from a minor IT headache into a critical security risk. To stop data leaks in their tracks, SAP launched the Early Adopter phase of Project Honeycomb this February 2026. This new governance layer, built directly into the SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP), has a clear mission: to let IT departments track and oversee the use of external AI models without stifling employee innovation.
Real-Time Visibility and Protection
Project Honeycomb acts as a command center that scans and logs interactions between business processes and the various AI tools employees use alongside official systems. This isn’t about blocking software; it’s an observability tool that provides total visibility into which corporate data is being sent to public models like Claude or ChatGPT.
This feature addresses urgent market demand, as the lack of clear policies has led to several high-profile confidentiality breaches. With this solution, administrators can:
- Identify unauthorized usage patterns of generative AI across different departments.
- Set security perimeters that trigger alerts whenever sensitive info—like financial records or client data—attempts to leave the SAP ecosystem.
- Standardize access to Large Language Models (LLMs) by routing external tool usage through secure, auditable gateways.
The Path to Responsible Corporate AI
Implementing Project Honeycomb makes the transition to Sovereign AI much smoother. By providing an environment where experimentation is monitored, companies can pinpoint which external use cases add value and eventually migrate them to internal solutions like Joule or SAP’s own Generative AI Hub.
This strategy drastically reduces the attack surface and cuts costs associated with unmanaged individual subscriptions. The General Availability (GA) release is expected to include automatic connectors for major external low-code and no-code platforms later this year, cementing SAP BTP as the single “source of truth” for data governance.
Necessary Governance for 2026
In today’s hyper-digital landscape, trust can’t be built on bans; it has to be built on transparency. Project Honeycomb doesn’t just protect a company’s intellectual property—it legitimizes tech usage by ensuring every interaction complies with local privacy laws.
Organizations that manage to get this “honeycomb” of data under control won’t just avoid legal trouble—they’ll foster a workplace where human talent and AI work together within a guaranteed safety net. Control is no longer a barrier; it’s the engine driving true business innovation.
