PNC Bank has a clear vision of how AI can and should support its customers, shareholders and employees, and that vision places humans as central characters in the story. The company understands the value of human oversight in maintaining quality data and modeling and has an AI strategy undergirded by this foundation — applying a human-machine teaming, or human-in-the-loop, approach.
While PNC has used AI for years, it is identifying new ways to leverage its data, tools and techniques that align with the company’s dedication to implementing AI responsibly.
With an uncertain regulatory future governing AI modeling, not to mention the significant costs and compute power necessary to implement AI at scale, this is easier said than done. That’s why Head of Data and Automation Ned Carroll is building a team of data-, technology- and business-savvy professionals eager to tackle these complex problems.
Carroll envisions a future team of experts who can design solutions that are both technically sound and strategically valuable, while applying a human-in-the-loop approach that is rooted in a dedication to quality assurance. While PNC creates a space for innovative thinking, Carroll emphasizes the importance of balancing each decision with sound reasoning. Unlike the “move fast and break things” mantra often seen in big tech, PNC’s approach prioritizes stability and customer trust — crucial in the financial services industry.
“When it comes down to it, we want to build tech that will eventually be used. If we don’t anticipate all hurdles at the design stage, we run the risk of not realizing our vision. It’s about innovating thoughtfully and setting the team up for success,” Carroll said.
Identifying Opportunities and Owning Outcomes
The team operates through three key functions: opportunity identification; capability management and delivery; and governance. This structured approach allows for systematic identification and development of opportunities across the business.
Opportunity identification is driven by cultivating ideas from business and technology partners, as well as industry trends, research and PNC’s business strategy. The team manages the operations, delivery and roadmaps of a growing list of capabilities and techniques, including: robotic process automation, intelligent documentation, conversational AI, machine learning, generative AI and observability. Lastly, governance is not just about risk management, but also optimizing efficiency and growth.
“We consider a few key questions to identify the goals and really ask whether we think there is a meaningful opportunity there,” Carroll explained.
This work isn’t a siloed effort that ships new tech out to the rest of the bank. Rather, the team is integrated across PNC to design and implement these projects. This helps ensure solutions are technically feasible and aligned with business objectives by partnering and collaborating with business and technology talent across the organization. The result is the delivery of solutions that can actually be applied to solve problems for the business owners that will ultimately use them.
“Our team operates as a multiplier, working closely with business and technology partners,” Carroll said. “We simplify technical details for nontechnical stakeholders and work with HR to provide training and seminars, fostering an organization-wide understanding and adoption of AI and automation.”
“Our team operates as a multiplier, working closely with business and technology partners.”
R&D: Bridging Gaps and Innovating
When partners identify opportunities to create efficiencies in how systems function, the research and development team steps in. This team explores emerging trends and technologies, particularly in AI and automation, to find innovative solutions. For the team, getting to these complex solutions starts with taking the long view.
“In the R&D space, we look at emerging tech that we think can be real in a six-month period,” Carroll explained. “That’s what we should start thinking about now.”
Executing on Initiatives
At the core, PNC’s AI strategy is shaped by the desire to serve and support those who are both designing the innovation and benefiting from it. The perfect candidates for jobs on Carroll’s team are curious by nature, eager to solve puzzles and excited by the prospect of watching their ideas culminate into real value for customers, shareholders and employees.
“The challenges we face often reveal the most interesting aspects of our work,” Carroll said. “For example, on one project, achieving the desired accuracy levels meant that we had to retrain our models to handle diverse regulations and document variations. Similarly, for another, we had to adjust the model to translate procedural language into customer-friendly communication, which is a critical step to improve the customer experience.”
