Despite 99% of financial services leaders in a recent EY survey reporting that their organisations were deploying Generative AI (GenAI) in some manner, over one in five respondents said they are nervous or sceptical about the potential impact of the tech, with insurance ranking highest in this category.
EY’s 2023 Financial Services GenAI Survey found that all respondents are either already using, or planning to use, GenAI. Though again, just over one in five said they do not feel confident that their organisations are “well-positioned to take advantage of the potential benefits.”
As mentioned, insurance is ranked highest in the nervous or sceptical category (24%), while banking and capital markets leaders had the lowest levels of scepticism (17%), followed by wealth and asset management (21%).
David Kadio-Morokro, EY Americas Financial Services Innovation Leader, said, “While there’s a whole world of possibilities and efficiencies AI can create for financial services in areas ranging from data analysis to customer service optimization, blind optimism and hype around the technology can ultimately have a counterproductive impact on a business.
“We like to take an ‘innovation intelligence’ approach to putting artificial intelligence to work — planning, education and an agile test and learn strategy for implementation are imperative for those looking to make the most of AI’s potential benefits.”
Still, EY’s survey observed that the majority of respondents feel positive about AI, with more than half (55%) saying they feel supportive and optimistic about using AI in their organisation.
“The long-term sentiment is even more optimistic, with 77% of executives viewing GenAI as an overall benefit to the financial services industry in the next 5-10 years,” EY said.
The firm added that leaders see a particular opportunity in customer and client experience, with 87% stating that they believe AI can bring improvements to this space.
Sameer Gupta, EY Americas Financial Services Organization Advanced Analytics Leader, continued, “Generative AI holds the potential to revolutionize a broad array of business functions. With each new wave of AI and analytic innovation, it becomes increasingly clear how important it is to have a tech stack with a solid foundation.
“Our role is to support financial services organizations in making sure their legacy data and technologies are unimpeachable before adding AI applications on top of existing systems.”
EY’s survey also noted that if organisations want to take advantage of AI’s benefits, a major factor in their success will be a better understanding of, and improvements in, their data infrastructure.
The firm also underlined the importance of winning the AI talent battle, with EY Americas Financial Services Accounts Managing Partner Michael Fox, stating, “Focusing on the human role of AI implementation is just as important as technology infrastructure.
“Our data showed that 44% of leaders cited access to skilled resources as a barrier to AI implementation, but there’s only so many already skilled professionals in existence.
“Part of the solution is deploying upskilling programs today that can equip your current workforce with the skills they need to help leaders and their business thrive in an increasingly AI-centric world.”
