Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) claims that it remains dedicated to the use of innovative tech to address the needs of its clients and employees.
This commitment to innovation has led to a 94% increase in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) “granted patents and pending patent applications since 2022.”
The company has nearly 1,100 AI and ML patents and “pending applications in its portfolio, with more than half having already been granted.”
Overall, the bank revealed in an update that it “holds nearly 7,000 granted patents and pending patent applications, and the most granted patents of any financial services company.”
This is thanks to the creativity of its “more than 7,500 talented inventors based in 14 countries and 42 U.S. states, and a culture that empowers teammates to explore and develop innovative solutions for individuals and businesses around the world.”
In addition to artificial intelligence and machine learning, other technology categories in which new patents have been granted to Bank of America this year include “information security, online and mobile banking, payments, data analytics, and augmented and virtual reality.”
Bank of America says that it spends more than $12 billion annually on technology, of which “approximately $4 billion will be directed to new technology initiatives in 2024.”
These ongoing investments continue to enhance client experiences and to drive operational efficiencies.
Bank of America’s approach to AI reportedly includes human oversight, transparency, and accountability for all outcomes.
A few examples of how AI and machine learning are being used responsibly across the company to benefit clients and employees include:
- Erica – Over 45 million clients have used Erica, the most advanced and first widely available AI-driven virtual financial assistant. This adoption has led to 2.4 billion interactions with Erica since its launch in 2018.
- Wealth Management – Launched in 2020, Client Insights uses AI-enabled data analytics to help Merrill Wealth Management and Bank of America Private Bank advisors identify, manage and act on changes in client circumstances. This leads to opportunities to best serve clients’ tax harvesting, retirement planning, and student banking needs, and more.
- CashPro Chat – CashPro is a digital banking platform used by 40,000 corporate and commercial clients around the world to manage their treasury operations. As the platform’s virtual service advisor, CashPro Chat uses the same AI and machine learning capabilities powering Erica to help clients quickly view transactions, find information about accounts, and more.
- Bank of America Intelligent Receivables – This reconciliation solution uses AI and advanced data capture technology to bring together payment information and associated remittance detail from various payment channels, offering greater efficiency and insights to companies and their customers around the world. Intelligent Receivables matches payments to outstanding invoices and thereby reduces time and costs associated with manual processing while speeding up reconciliation to enable new sales.
- Global Markets –Bank of America’s internal facing chatbot leverages natural language processing and machine learning to answer queries that arise during the trading day – continually improving the accuracy of responses based on previously answered questions. Deployed to over 20 areas of Global Markets, the chatbot connects the company’s proprietary systems and databases to deliver intuitive responses to trading-related questions such as real-time market depth, trending indicators, historical trading volumes, current exposures, and unmatched or cancelled trades.