Lloyds Banking Group Partners With UnlikelyAI to Test Groundbreaking AI Technology

Lloyds Banking Group has announced it is partnering with UnlikelyAI to explore how cutting-edge artificial intelligence can support innovation and enhance customer experience.The Lloyds UnlikelyAI partnership will explore how explainable AI can be applied to real-world financial services, supporting ethical innovation and customer trust.

UnlikelyAI’s platform focuses on delivering AI that is reliable, transparent, explainable and free from hallucinations – meaning that it generates more accurate information.

It achieves this through a neurosymbolic approach, which combines neural networks (which learn from data) with symbolic reasoning (which follows logic and rules) to create smarter and more reliable AI.

UnlikelyAI was founded by William Tunstall-Pedoe, the creator of the voice assistant Evi, which was acquired by Amazon in 2012 and integrated into the creation of the Alexa voice assistant by the Evi team two years later.

Through the partnership, Lloyds Banking Group is testing UnlikelyAI’s technology within its Innovation Sandbox. This involves conducting a proof of concept experiment to explore how neurosymbolic AI can be used across the Group, in a way that delivers responsible, accurate and consistent support. The Lloyds UnlikelyAI partnership also aims to explore how AI can improve decision-making without compromising accountability or explainability.

The Group plans to use UnlikelyAI alongside existing AI platforms to support better customer experiences and reinforce its leadership in responsible AI adoption.

Ranil Boteju, Chief Data and Analytics Officer at Lloyds Banking Group, said: “We’re harnessing the power of AI to revolutionise banking. UnlikelyAI’s neurosymbolic approach will allow us to test innovative new features for colleagues and customers that are not only useful, fast and intelligent, but also transparent and reliable. Together with UnlikelyAI, we are committed to ensuring that innovation goes hand-in-hand with customer benefit, accuracy and compliance.”

William Tunstall-Pedoe, Founder and CEO of UnlikelyAI, said: “This new Lloyds UnlikelyAI partnership with one of the biggest, oldest, and most trusted British banks is testament to the demand for novel AI solutions in regulated industries. It also represents a significant milestone in making AI effective, trustworthy, safe and compliant in the banking sector. We built UnlikelyAI to solve the fundamental problems that have prevented LLMs from being deployed safely in customer-facing financial services. Our unique approach enables banks to harness the power of conversational AI while complying with the regulations and standards that are fundamental to operations.”

The Lloyds UnlikelyAI partnership may pave the way for future AI-powered services that are transparent, compliant, and customer-first. The announcement follows the latest No Ordinary Tech Podcast episode from Lloyds Banking Group, which features Ranil Boteju and UnlikelyAI’s CEO, William Tunstall-Pedoe, who discussed how fintechs and businesses can work together to accelerate innovation.