A group of financial services professionals at work

The financial sector is generally very optimistic about AI. Source: Shutterstock

Take it easy, robots aren’t taking over the world

BANKERS can breathe easy, artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t going to replace them anytime soon.

As more institutions embark on AI projects, there have been questions on how it will impact job security. However, a recent report by Broadridge Financial Solutions shows that most financial services professionals are positive towards the future of AI.

Having said that, most financial institutions are still struggling to deploy AI; only about one-fifth of projects are actually in production.

One-third of the respondents predict that AI will reduce organization’s need for human labor by 10 percent or less in the next 3 years. Only less than 5 percent anticipates robots to replace more than 50 percent of humans in the same time frame.

The numbers suggest that there isn’t a huge fear of job loss due to AI. Although, it isn’t because of a lack of investment in AI projects.

In fact, the report recorded an optimistic 80 percent of the respondents looking at using AI, machine learning (ML), or robotics process automation (RPA) in their operations.

Nearly all of them recognized the importance of co-developing AI processes with other firms. However, respondents say actual implementation is low due to data-specific challenges.

More than half of them cited “data quality and standardization” to be a top concern for deploying AI. On top of that 40 percent see data availability as a challenge.

“AI has the power to completely transform financial services, however many capital markets firms struggle to make a business case for the investment in AI, especially since their data is decentralized,” said Mike Alexander, President of North America Wealth and Capital Markets Solutions.

Many financial services have accumulated data over time. However, most of the information is not shared across the entire organization, which leads to unstandardized data.

AI, on the other hand, relies heavily on accurate data. The more data can be fed to the system, the more precise calculations and predictions will be.

Alexander advised, “By leveraging a consistent data fabric across a network of firms and mutualizing innovation investment with a strategic partner, firms can truly realize the value of AI and create a competitive advantage with next-generation technologies.”

In general, the financial sector recognizes the need for AI; many are willing to work towards implementing AI in their operations. However, there are still issues that need to be ironed out, before financial institutions see the value of deploying AI en mass.