KeyBank is using generative AI to streamline internal tasks before implementing the technology in its consumer-facing channels. 

The $190 billion bank has found the technology can be used to support its documentation teams to minimize the manual workload and boost overall efficiency, KeyBank Executive Vice president and Chief Transformation Officer Dominic Cugini said last week during a generative AI webinar.

Generative AI could hypothetically help a caseworker address 15 to 20 cases per day, as opposed to 10 cases without the technology, Cugini said. 

The tech also enables standardization and decreases human fatigue — and therefore the potential for human error — throughout the bank’s operations. 

However, even as it continues to identify use cases, KeyBank is not ready to let generative AI loose on operations yet; this is where its dedicated generative AI council comes in. 

Gen AI strategy

Since the first quarter of 2023, the bank has been working on a policy that blends AI, machine learning and generative AI approaches into one strategy, Cugini said.  

Part of that strategy is the development of a council that includes members of Cugini’s transformation team as well as those from the model risk and tech teams. The role of this council is to determine “how to bring [generative AI] into Key and do it in a responsible manner,” Cugini said. 

The bank will continue to bring human intervention to its AI technology until it matures, Cugini said. KeyBank is conducting further research and prioritizing internal education before implementing generative AI in consumer-facing channels, he added. 

The bank continued to invest in technology and its tech stack in Q3 as its equipment costs increased 3% year over year to $20 million, according to the bank’s recent earnings report.