Catching Up Fast by Driving Value From AI

Some organizations may feel that acquiring AI capabilities is a race, and if a company starts late, it can never catch up. That notion is belied by Scotiabank (officially the Bank of Nova Scotia), which has pursued a results-oriented approach to artificial intelligence over the past two years. While some of its resources are devoted to exploring how new technologies — including blockchain and quantum computing — might drive fresh business models and products, the great majority of its data and AI work is focused on improving operations today rather than incubating for the future. As a result, Scotiabank — one of the Big Five banks based in Canada — has caught up to competitors in some crucial areas. It has done so by more closely integrating its data and analytics work; taking a pragmatic approach to AI; and focusing on reusable data sets, which help with both speed and return on investment.