Banks and insurers expect 86% rise in AI tech investment by 2025

Banks and insurance firms are planning to increase their artificial intelligence-related investment into technology by 2025, according to research from The Economist Intelligence Unit. The report, commissioned by AI-analytics and search firm ThoughtSpot, surveyed 200 business executives and c-suite leaders at investment banks, retail banks and insurance companies in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. It found that while a large majority (86 per cent) of respondents had a strong degree of confidence in the benefits of AI to shape the future of financial institutions, more than half of respondents said the technology was not yet in use in the business' processes and offerings, with just 15 per cent saying the technology is used extensively across the organisation. However, despite relatively low levels of implementation, the research found that many institutions are beginning to invest in AI over the next five years, with 27 per cent saying it will spur new products and services, a quarter believing it will open up new markets or industries and the same amount saying it is paving the way for innovation in their industry. Looking to the future, 29 per cent of respondents expect between 51 per cent and 75 per cent of their workloads to be supported by AI technologies in five years' time, as processes become increasingly automated.