By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 17th, 2024
The AI simulations will allow Bank of America create experiences for staff, teaching them how to handle specific work situations.
Bank of America Corp has introduced artificial intelligence (AI) and the metaverse into its staff onboarding process. The orientation process introduces employees to situations they are likely to face in the course of their employment.
According to a Bloomberg report, Bank of America has used this AI process for more than 200,000 employees, including new and existing staff. The aim is to create virtual reality simulations for specific situations like responding to customer complaints or handling possible security threats. The bank set up staff with virtual reality gadgets to simulate these events using AI and the metaverse. According to John Jordan, Head of The Academy at Bank of America:
“These simulations act like practice reps. It makes a new employee experienced, even if they’re brand new.”
Another executive, Mike Wynn, praised the idea, specifying that the process is immersive, and evokes the proper responses in a simulated conversation. Wynn said:
“It’s hard to teach traditionally. VR creates anxiety, it gets your heart rate up. It makes you nervous.”
While admitting impressive uses of AI technology and the metaverse, company CEO Brian Moynihan sued for caution. Moynihan said although AI comes with “extreme benefits”, a proper understanding of the technology is important.
Bank of America has joined other organizations using AI and simulations for work purposes. Last October, the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) developed a virtual training facility in a private metaverse, used to train officers on how to screen passengers and verify documents. Interestingly, Interpol is also working on policing the metaverse. The organization’s secretary general Jurgen Stock said this is necessary because criminals easily adapt to new tech to commit more crimes.
Bank of America Using AI Despite Banking Pushback
In March, banking giant Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) reportedly began using AI to help developers write code. Although the bank’s chief information officer Marco Argenti said the tool is still in its “proof of concept” stage and not yet ready for production, internal tests have begun.
The bank’s decision seemed to show a different outlook on AI, essentially opposing positions taken by its contemporaries. A month before, JPMorgan (NYSE: JPM) restricted employees from using OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The company was concerned about the dangers of using third-party software to avoid compliance reasons and safety issues. Shortly after, Bank of America and Citigroup enforced similar constraints on AI use.
The financial institutions’ reluctance to AI may strictly be compliance and safety concerns instead of hesitation to innovation. While Bank of America is unwilling to use ChatGPT for data and safety concerns, the bank does understand that the technology can be beneficial in other ways.
Bank of America is also known for its aversion to crypto. On Thursday, the bank reportedly shut down a customer’s account allegedly because the account conducts crypto transactions with Coinbase. Brian Armstrong, the CEO of Coinbase, responded to the tweet, trying to find out if there were similar cases. In a follow-up tweet, Armstrong asked users to confirm or deny the complaint in a Twitter poll.