The Role of Artificial Intelligence Technologies in Enhancing the Efficiency of Internal Audit Procedures: An Applied Study in Iraqi Universities
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Abstract
This study aims at studying the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies in improving the efficiency of internal audit procedures in Iraqi universities which is still work still being conducted manually or semi-automated in many of those audit units. The descriptive analytical design was used. An in-depth questionnaire was sent to a purposive stratified sample of 145 respondents (82.8% of which were usable) in public and private Iraqi universities in the first semester of 2025 and the first semester of 2024, consisting mainly of practicing internal auditors and academics specializing in accounting and auditing. The regression analysis revealed that the respondents' attitudes toward AI technologies were positively associated with their perception of the improvement of the efficiency of internal audit (β = 0.624, p < 0.001), specifically in the areas of risk analysis, detection of errors and fraud, and the automation of repetitive audit tasks. There is still a relatively small number of people who are fully and systematically using AI tools within their units (9.2%). The biggest challenges were the lack of qualified personnel (82.5%), insufficient technical infrastructure (76.7%) and ineffective data governance policies (62.5%). The study suggests that Iraqi universities should establish clear plans to incorporate the use of AI into their internal audit and make regular investments in the training of their auditors.
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