NatWest has forged a tech partnership with Microsoft and DreamQuark to develop a new artificial intelligence (AI) driven technology called Next Generation Complex Analytics that can simulate future market outcomes.
According to the UK-based retail banking company, the new technology will help it to predict future risks and opportunities in its selected markets and customer segments.
The collaboration with Microsoft and France-based AI specialist DreamQuark is expected to enable NatWest to simulate behaviours of various environments like financial markets or transport networks. The simulation will help in processing the behaviours into meaningful patterns and insights to help with an accurate prediction of future outcomes.
The predictions will be generated by using a combination of simulations run through the system, and machine learning, said NatWest.
Microsoft UK CEO Cindy Rose said: “AI is the engine of the fourth industrial revolution. It has the potential to fundamentally transform how entire industries operate, delivering greater value to organisations, employees, customers and society as a whole.
“NatWest’s ambition to harness this technology to deliver more sophisticated insights, boost performance and reduce risk is an excellent example of the transformative powers that AI offers.”
The capability of the technology will be evaluated by the partners on various use cases within the bank’s personal and commercial businesses.
NatWest said that by testing the capability of Next Generation Complex Analytics, it wants to know whether the new modelling is better than the methods it currently uses for predicting future outcomes.
NatWest expects the new technology to drive significant value to customers and shareholders
NatWest innovation and solutions director Kevin Hanley said: “By allowing us to better predict future outcomes, risks and trends, the implementation of this technology could be of significant value to our customers and shareholders over the coming years.
“For the first time, we’ll be able to deliver an aggregated, forward-looking view of the world around us, ultimately helping us build a stronger, safer bank.”
Last month, the retail banking company launched a pilot to test voice technology designed to enable its customers to do banking by using the Google Assistant on their smartphone or Google Home smart speaker.
