A new report by FXC Intelligence, published today, reviews mentions of AI across major payments companies' earnings calls to assess the significance of the technology to the payments industry. The report found that the frequency of AI mentions increased by 1,170% year-over year between 2022 and 2023, which strongly suggests that this is an area of significance and focus for the companies surveyed.

Out of the 16 companies that were surveyed by FXC Intelligence, 75% mentioned AI at least once in their 2023 earnings calls, compared to 44% in 2022 and 2021 – a 31% increase.

Generative AI saw the biggest uptick of mentions. The technology saw no mentions at all prior to 2023, however 75% of companies discussed it at least once over the course of 2023, with most mentions concentrated in Q4. With most companies using their Q4 earnings call to set out upcoming strategy, this suggests that generative AI will be a primary focus for future initiatives.

Paypal mentioned AI the most frequently, discussing the technology across all four earnings calls in 2023 with a combined total of 29 mentions. Mastercard came in second with Visa closely following in third, while Square and Cash App owner Block came in joint fourth with payments processor Worldline. In general, companies in payments processing mentioned AI the most frequently.

AI applications largely focused on fraud protection and risk management; customer service and experience improvements; and productivity or cost gains. Here, the former largely focused on existing applications, while the latter two trended towards future projects.

Lucy Ingham, Editor-in-Chief and Head of Content, at FXC Intelligence said:

“What is clear from our analysis is that payments companies are becoming more interested in leveraging the benefits of AI to support the development of better products, increased productivity and improved security measures.

“It remains to be seen if this interest in AI proves to be just a buzzword fad or a real disruptive technology for the industry. 2024 will be pivotal in determining to what extent it remains at the forefront of companies’, and investors’, attention.”

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