Artificial intelligence is coming to your mobile banking apps in a big way (unless you bank with Laurentian, or something).
What happened: Three of Canada’s Big Five banks were ranked within the top 10 globally for AI innovation by Evident Insights, which crunched the numbers on AI-related research papers and patent filings as well as investments in AI startups over the last five months.
- RBC, TD, and BMO ranked third, sixth, and ninth, respectively, among the 50 banks listed, while BMO secured the highest increase in average AI patent citations.
Why it matters: Between fraud detection and risk management, the banking industry is ripe for AI disruption. Plus, these institutions handle so much data on a daily basis that they need AI technology to underpin everything from product recommendations to loan applications.
You might already recognize…
- BMO’s mobile app: Embedded AI can predict when a customer is on track for a negative balance and send them an alert to help them manage their finances better.
- TD “digital nudges”: AI features across all business lines help with predicting customer behaviours (like buying a home) and detecting potential insurance fraud.
- RBC NOMI: Your writer knows from personal experience that AI helps NOMI flag when you’re spending “against your budget,” which is somehow all of the time.
What’s next: The CEO of the company behind the report told The Globe and Mail that while Canadian banks are patenting like there’s no tomorrow, they did not score highly in terms of their investments in AI-related startups — presenting another area of opportunity.—SB