What comes after the hype? Financial Services AI strategies in 2026 and beyond

GenAI's initial hype is yielding to sustainable strategies in finance. By 2025, it augments areas like contact centers and marketing. Success in 2026 demands unified data, strong governance, and a focus on business outcomes, moving past "FOMO" investments.

This report features experts: Adrien Chenailler (Cloudera), Conor Sayles (Bank of Ireland), and Craig Borysowich (International Monetary Edge Consulting).

Key Findings:

• Augmentation over automation: GenAI accelerates human actions, excelling in both "invisible" back-end improvements and customer-facing chatbots.
• The hybrid return: 2026 emphasizes hybrid models, balancing data center privacy with cloud cost optimization.
• Raising the data governance bar: Increased data needs for AI require governance—focusing on lineage, ownership, and bias elimination—to be integral to design.
• Overcoming ROI challenges: The main obstacle (36%) is defining clear business outcomes. Success requires starting with business strategy, allowing metrics like revenue and retention to follow.