Exclusive data from Kin + Carta, the global transformation consultancy, has revealed that the overwhelming majority of financial services leaders believe AI has an intrinsic role in the sector.

At the recent FWD23 summit hosted by the consultancy, whose clients include Santander, 80 senior leaders from the UK’s largest financial services brands were asked: “What will help your organisation harness the power of AI and unlock innovation?”. 

A huge 98% of the C-suite and VP-level respondents believe that they won’t need to convince others that AI “is the future” of financial services. Meanwhile, 30% said “moving past the hype cycle and realising actual value” would help their organisation harness the power of AI.

Other findings from the survey showed that half (50%) of the attendees see that “identifying AI use cases” would help them implement AI, with:

• 34% want these “use cases” to demonstrate how AI can transform customer experience 

• While  16% wanted to see the true value of AI to understand where it can support business operations. 

Phil O’Neill, director of financial services at Kin + Carta Europe commented on the findings: “Financial services is no stranger to disruption, but unlike previously, there seems to be a sense of common thinking across the sector - AI is here to stay.

“But we are not there yet. As the survey results suggest, we need to be moving beyond the hype and actually prove the use cases and value the application of AI can deliver. Only then, with the right data foundations in place, will we see the more profound applications of AI come to the fore. 

“Industry leaders can see the positive impact that AI will have on financial services but only if we think pragmatically, build tools responsibly, and understand limitations, will we reach that AI mecca where it is actually making a worthwhile difference.”

Speaker at FWD23, Agata Grela, Futurist, also commented, “There's excitement about AI, there's possibility, yet it's important to step back and be thoughtful to ensure systems, measures and structure are in place for AI to be used to its full potential, ahead of it being unleashed to the world.”

Results were taken from research carried out at FWD23, held in London on the 14th of June 2023 by Kin + Carta, the latest in a series of sector-specific events, bringing together industry experts to discuss the power of data and AI and how they can be used to tackle market challenges.