For instance, platform providers and advice firms need to work together efficiently to provide a seamless experience throughout their interactions with clients.
FTA: Finally, Rebecca Anscombe, how can AI and consumer duty work together?
RA: As AI technologies continue to evolve and become more mainstream, they have the potential to significantly improve processes relating to delivering the four key outcomes of consumer duty, if used correctly.
With the ability to streamline repeatable processes, analyse pricing strategies and introduce proactive customer support tools, AI can enhance the way in which value, consumer understanding and good outcomes can be monitored.
The ability of AI to analyse vast datasets, decipher consumer preferences, and predict behaviours also promises a new era of efficiency in service provision, where customer support tools anticipate needs before they arise.
This will free up time to focus on the ‘human’ areas such as considering vulnerability and individual client needs.
Furthermore, there will be improvements in compliance and operational capacity as a result of AI integration, allowing quicker analysis and proactive responses to changes in regulation or as a result of client outcome reviews, alongside a reduction in risk related to manual processing.
This technological advancement is not just about doing things faster, but about doing them smarter and more reliably.
However, it will be crucial to ensure new AI tools are deployed correctly, with appropriate oversight and governance.
Firms must understand AI's limitations and review the quality of data, implementing robust procedures to monitor results, assess for bias, and ensure client data is fully protected.
As AI technology becomes more sophisticated, so must our fraud and cyber resilience policies.
Carmen Reichman is multi-media editor at FT Adviser
