# Shadow IT Index: August 2026

Published August 1, 2026 by Torii Research (Torii). Updated October 8, 2026. Canonical URL: https://www.toriihq.com/research/reports/shadow-it-index-august-2026

A shorter Shadow IT list in August, led by the AI note taker Plaud.ai at 8% adoption.

## What the data says

Plaud.ai (8% adoption) ranks first, ahead of the time tracker Timely.com (6% adoption).

Productivity (5) and IT & Security (4) are the largest categories. AI agents show up well beyond developer tools, from Dropzone in security operations to Walton in legal deal management.

The median Shadow IT index is 78, and 2 of the 15 apps score 90 or higher: Timely.com at 96 and Plaud.ai at 94.

This edition covers July 2026 usage data.

## At a glance

- Top 3: Plaud.ai (8% adoption), Timely.com (6% adoption), ThinkFlowGPT (5% adoption).
- Highest Shadow IT scores: Timely.com (96), Plaud.ai (94), Send Later (89).

## What kinds of apps

AI-native apps: 53% (8 of the 15 apps). Share of this edition's apps by theme (one theme per app; definitions at https://www.toriihq.com/research/themes):

- AI coding and building: 20% (3 apps: ThinkFlowGPT, Devin, ollama)
- Security and IT: 20% (3 apps: RCLONE, NinjaOne, Tailscale)
- AI agents: 13% (2 apps: Dropzone, Walton)
- Personal productivity: 13% (2 apps: Timely.com, Send Later)
- AI assistants: 7% (1 app: Kimi)
- AI notes and voice: 7% (1 app: Plaud.ai)
- Developer and data tools: 7% (1 app: WorkOS)
- Design and video: 7% (1 app: CapCut)
- Personal and consumer apps: 7% (1 app: Softonic)

## Rankings

Ranked by adoption.

| Rank | App | Category | Theme | AI-native | Adoption (%) | Shadow IT index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plaud.ai | Productivity | AI notes and voice | Yes | 8 | 94 |
| 2 | Timely.com | Productivity | Personal productivity | Yes | 6 | 96 |
| 3 | ThinkFlowGPT | Productivity | AI coding and building | Yes | 5 | 88 |
| 4 | WorkOS | Operations | Developer and data tools | No | 5 | 68 |
| 5 | Send Later | Productivity | Personal productivity | No | 5 | 89 |
| 6 | Devin | Developer Tools | AI coding and building | Yes | 4 | 71 |
| 7 | Softonic | Analytics & BI | Personal and consumer apps | No | 4 | 74 |
| 8 | RCLONE | IT & Security | Security and IT | No | 4 | 82 |
| 9 | Dropzone | IT & Security | AI agents | Yes | 4 | 81 |
| 10 | NinjaOne | IT & Security | Security and IT | No | 4 | 46 |
| 11 | Tailscale | IT & Security | Security and IT | No | 4 | 66 |
| 12 | Walton | Operations | AI agents | Yes | 3 | 86 |
| 13 | Kimi | Productivity | AI assistants | Yes | 3 | 78 |
| 14 | CapCut | Design | Design and video | No | 3 | 72 |
| 15 | ollama | Developer Tools | AI coding and building | Yes | 3 | 74 |

## Method

Anonymized, aggregated usage data from companies across industries and sizes, reported as percentages, ranks, and scores. No single organization is identifiable. Methodology: https://www.toriihq.com/research/methodology

## Changelog

- 2026-10-08, Update: Released after its edition date. This edition covers July 2026 data. It went live on 2026-10-08, and its figures were calculated then.

## How to cite

Torii Research. (2026, August 1). Shadow IT Index: August 2026 [Data set]. Torii. https://www.toriihq.com/research/reports/shadow-it-index-august-2026

Data: https://www.toriihq.com/research/data/shadow-it-index-august-2026.csv and https://www.toriihq.com/research/data/shadow-it-index-august-2026.json