Most recent advances in artificial intelligence have gained special traction in Switzerland, where a substantial portion of the workforce is using it for professional tasks, clearly exceeding the worldwide average.

Although the artificial intelligence market is increasingly dominated by the United States of America, Switzerland’s particularity in this regard lies in the predominance of financial services in its economy, and therefore, the relative importance of AI in investment decision-making and wealth management.

The application of artificial intelligence to the specificities of this Swiss industry has the potential to give local tech players a competitive advantage, directly connected to the financial institutions involved. While unable to benefit from a vast market, as their American counterparts do, financial technology entrepreneurs in Switzerland gain a competitive edge by focusing on the unique intensity of the financial and banking services within the CHF zone.

Moreover, in a globalized and hyper-competitive world, this advantage can only be realized by leveraging all the resources available to entrepreneurs. Notably, Switzerland has two major linguistic regions, each presenting a distinct entrepreneurial culture compared to the other. Knowing how to capitalize on this diversity is also essential for achieving the objective of making Switzerland globally competitive in the field of artificial intelligence.

Artificial Intelligence and Financial Markets

The following section is based on two assumptions. What’s unique about artificial intelligence is that it is a technology capable of self-reinforcement, and the viability of a project heavily depends on the quality of its financing.

Since the public release of generative AI platforms at the end of 2022, we have witnessed a remarkable correlation between the use of this technology in professional contexts and a perceived decrease in market volatility, though other factors could participate in this decrease.

In sum, a new type of global financial stability could give rise to a new type of technological project, more developed, and thus perpetuate this cycle of AI reinforcement.

It is even more interesting to think of AI as a stabilizing factor for financial markets, given that several notable economists in recent history have described the financial system as “the nervous system of the economy.” Modern AI itself is based on a technology called "neural networks," and although the two metaphors are not directly linked, their simultaneity allows us to suggest that AI appropriately functions as a stabilizing and developmental factor in the financial system.

We can observe a phenomenon of AI reinforcement, but AI can also strengthen any industry that supports it. This is true in macroeconomic terms, as we have seen with the stability of financial markets, and on a microeconomic level as well.

The Application of AI in Financial Services in Switzerland

It is difficult for financial institutions to gain an advantage from direct access to artificial intelligence, as countless actors worldwide already use AI to solve their daily tasks.

In the field of wealth management particularly, an AI conversational agent (chatbot) will in principle never be more intelligent than the manager himself, if we define intelligence in the broadest sense.

Again, the added value of applying AI in financial services in Switzerland lies in leveraging the specific resources of this industry, and particularly its technological ecosystem.

Thus, we propose to distinguish between "simple" artificial intelligence and "collective" artificial intelligence. The latter corresponds to a system of artificial intelligences integrated into a specific industry within an economy, such as financial services in Switzerland.

Therefore, in their digital environment, the wealth manager benefits from the expertise inherent to their entire industry, in this case, the Swiss financial services industry.

Significant efforts have been made in recent years to modernize the technological infrastructure of the financial and banking sector in Switzerland by fintech companies, as well as by major private, public, and associative players in the industry, often successfully, and our service offerings integrate into the continuity of this dynamic.