‍Setting the Stage: AI Meets Finance

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In today's world of increasingly complex and fragmented media, organizations face tougher challenges in managing, tracking, and maximizing their advertising investments. Enter artificial intelligence - a game-changer that's making waves across industries, including finance, where its impact is just starting to heat up.

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This spark ignited the AI & FinTech Summit - Future Scenarios in Media, Artificial Intelligence, and Automation, held on September 25, 2024, at MINT's Milan HQ.

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AI in Advertising: The Game-Changer We've Been Waiting For

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Salvatore Internullo, MINT's Chief Growth Officer, kicked off the event, bringing together heavy hitters from the financial world like Visa, Nexi, N26, Treezor, LisPay, Mediolanum, Mooney, Cofidis, Epipoli, MyBank, Buffetti Finance, Banca Sella, and many more.

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Internullo highlighted AI's growing influence in advertising and its potential to supercharge business growth. He explained:

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"We're at a pivotal moment in advertising. AI and automation aren't just nice-to-haves - they're must-haves for optimizing media resources, even in the finance world. Nielsen data shows only 38% of marketers can accurately calculate their holistic advertising ROI. That's a huge gap that tech can bridge. Adopting advanced software solutions like an ARM platform offers an integrated approach based on transparency and governance, providing a complete, analytical view of advertising performance. Companies embracing this model aren't just boosting their investment effectiveness - they're securing a leadership position in the market, driven by innovation and data-informed decision-making."

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The Banking Evolution: What Financial Institutions Really Want from Tech Providers

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Next up was Prof. Maurizio Pimpinella, President of the Payment Service Providers Association and the Italian Digital HUB Foundation.

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He painted a picture of today's payment ecosystem, highlighting AI's current impact on the fintech market.

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Pimpinella called AI "an essential innovation tool," noting that Italy's GDP could grow by over 18% with AI adoption - and potentially even more if everyone, starting with citizens, embraces it.  

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"The fintech sector," he continued, "which today seems barely touched by the AI revolution, could soon be fully involved, given its openness to technological innovation."

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The "Engagement Banking in Europe - New Frontiers" report shows financial institutions are hungry for innovation, especially cloud-native and open architecture solutions:

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• 77% of banks are looking for platforms with open standards to boost integration and scalability.

• 75% prefer cloud-native solutions.

• 48% consider ready-to-use APIs crucial.

Pimpinella emphasized that AI in financial services isn't just about cost-cutting - it's about generating added value.

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"AI, like digital tech, is an investment for companies, not a cost. And remember, tech investments must go hand-in-hand with investing in human capital and training. To stay competitive and grow, we need constant employee upskilling. People often think AI works without human intervention, but it's actually the most human-centric technology, designed to support us."

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illimity's AI Journey

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Vittoria La Porta, Chief Communication and Marketing Officer of illimity, then took the stage to share illimity's journey, illustrating how AI has become part of their daily operations, simplifying and supercharging efficiency.

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La Porta highlighted how illimity has twice given "credit" - both financially and in terms of trust - to Italian companies, particularly SMEs investing in technology.

"AI is revolutionizing our industry," she said, "allowing us to personalize customer experiences and analyze data on a scale never seen before. With AI, we can ditch repetitive tasks and focus on more creative, innovative strategies. The most fascinating part? Thanks to complex language models, AI can communicate with us fluently, anticipating our needs and suggesting solutions. We're entering a real dialogue with AI, so it's crucial that we keep developing our digital skills. At the same time, we must remain in the driver's seat when using these technologies. To make our relationship with digital truly effective, we'll need to maintain a strong human touch, without delegating everything to machines."

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Insurtech's Next Leap: The Call for Interoperability

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Next up in the roundtable was Giuseppe Gulino, President of Share, an insurtech association. He stated:

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"AI improves insurance service efficiency, but without interoperability between platforms, its impact remains limited to big players. Open Insurance, by promoting free data circulation, ensures real technological progress and inclusive economic development. Our commitment is to support software houses and represent them to institutions, ensuring updated regulations that govern the correct and secure use of data."

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How Generative AI Could Reshape Our World

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The final speaker was Catalin Borsan, Solutions Architect at AWS. His talk gave attendees a tangible sense of AI's reality in finance, insurance, and beyond. Borsan painted an exciting, almost sci-fi picture of AI's impact: a technology built on innovative, high-value services.

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He focused on the contribution of generative AI, capable of creating innovation, boosting productivity, and driving economic growth, potentially increasing global GDP by a whopping 7 trillion dollars over the next decade (as shared by Goldman Sachs in a recent analysis).

The Grand Finale: Q&A and the Road Ahead

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To wrap things up, participants engaged in a Q&A session, kicked off by Massimo Fontana, MINT's Chief Customer Officer.

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The discussion highlighted the inevitability of digital transformation and AI's march forward in drastically improving business processes while also enhancing employees' lives by shifting them towards more stimulating, less repetitive tasks.

Thanks to all our partners and guests to join us for a remarkable session!

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