The Financial Conduct Authority has announced the launch of a new ‘Supercharged Sandbox’ designed to allow financial firms to experiment safely with artificial intelligence.
Tthe FCA has entered into a new partnership with technology company NVIDIA to provide firms with access to advanced computing power and AI tools.
Firms accepted into the sandbox will benefit from NVIDIA accelerated computing and its enterprise-grade AI software suite. The regulator said participants will also receive access to improved datasets, technical support and guidance on regulatory issues to help accelerate the development of AI-driven financial services.
The initiative is open to all financial services companies working with AI and at the early stages of development. It is designed to complement the FCA’s existing AI Live Testing service, which supports more advanced propositions that are closer to deployment.
Jessica Rusu, the FCA’s chief data, intelligence and information officer, said:
“This collaboration will help those that want to test AI ideas but who lack the capabilities to do so. We’ll help firms harness AI to benefit our markets and consumers, while supporting economic growth.”
The Supercharged Sandbox forms part of the FCA’s wider strategy to support responsible innovation and digital transformation in the sector. The regulator has said it sees AI as one of the defining technologies shaping the future of financial markets.
Dr Jochen Papenbrock, EMEA head of financial technology at NVIDIA, said: “AI is fundamentally reshaping the financial sector by automating processes, enhancing data analysis, and improving decision-making, which leads to greater efficiency, accuracy, and risk management across a wide range of financial activities.
“The FCA’s Supercharged Sandbox provides firms with a secure environment to explore AI innovations using NVIDIA’s full stack accelerated computing platform, supporting industry-wide growth and efficiency.”
Applications to join the Supercharged Sandbox are now open via the FCA’s website. Firms selected to participate will be able to begin testing from October.
