A Swiss wealth manager that runs AI through a Chief AI Office hired out of J.P. Morgan, counts 560 live use cases and nine large-scale initiatives, and has lost its technology chief while integrating Credit Suisse.
How is UBS using AI?
UBS Group AG, the Zurich-headquartered global wealth manager that reported US$1,707,284m of total assets at 30 June 2026, runs AI through a Chief AI Office led since 1 January 2026 by Daniele Magazzeni, hired from J.P. Morgan. Its second-quarter 2026 release counts 560 live AI use cases in production (up 92% year on year, with more than 920 applications in development), nine large-scale transformational AI initiatives, around 18,000 software developers using AI and a facility for every employee to build their own AI agents. The in-house assistant Red and Microsoft 365 Copilot are deployed across the firm, and the group is consolidating its tools onto a single platform, UBS Claves. In wealth management, CEO Sergio Ermotti said on the first-quarter 2026 call that nearly 90% of US financial-advisor teams use UBS's flagship AI insights platform; the US bank is covered at /banks/ubs-usa. Ermotti has framed AI as a cost lever that is 'not for free' and whose biggest winners will be clients. The technology organisation behind it changed in December 2025, when group technology chief Mike Dargan left for N26.
Lead bank
UBS AG
Total assets (group, as reported, Jun 30, 2026)
US$1,707,284m total assets[4]
Charter
Swiss bank holding group; FINMA is the lead consolidated supervisor, with UBS Bank USA, N.A. supervised by the OCC (covered at /banks/ubs-usa)
Headquarters
Zurich, Switzerland
Flagship platform
UBS Claves, Red and Microsoft 365 Copilot under the Chief AI Office
AI leadership
Sergio P. Ermotti · Daniele Magazzeni · Beatriz Martin · Chris Gelvin · Mike Dargan · Stephan Hug · Richard James · Greg Peirce · Iqbal Khan · Ronald Jansen
- Scale and trajectory: more than 300 live use cases in October 2025, 380 at the end of 2025 (20-F) and 560 by the 2Q26 release (92% up year on year, with 920-plus more in development), inside nine large-scale transformational AI initiatives.
- Organisation: a hub-and-spoke model with the Chief AI Office at the centre; an AI Operating & Risk Committee oversees execution, a Group AI policy sets standards, and all employees get mandatory annual training in the responsible use of AI. Tools are being consolidated onto one platform, UBS Claves.
- Workforce tools: Red and Microsoft 365 Copilot are deployed firm-wide; around 18,000 developers use AI across the software lifecycle and over a quarter of AI suggestions go directly into production code; every employee can build an AI agent; AI Power Hour reserves an hour a week for skills.
- Wealth management is the showcase: STAAT Insights gave US advisors more than 20 million insights in 2025, nearly 90% of US advisor teams use the platform, and a Reuters report quotes UBS's head of AI product on agents that send advisors thousands of alerts a day and, once an advisor approves, can place trades and transfers. The US bank is covered at /banks/ubs-usa.
- Leadership churn: group COO and technology chief Mike Dargan left at the end of 2025 to become N26's CEO; Group Technology now reports to Group COO Beatriz Martin, with Chris Gelvin interim head; the head of the AI lab in global banking also left for J.P. Morgan.
- Investments and partners: the Oxford-UBS Centre for Applied AI (20 researchers), a UBS-IDSIA AI Lab, an equity investment in Domino Data Lab (the RiskLab model-development platform) and an investment in Finster AI alongside FactSet; Microsoft Azure is a named partner.
- Costs and jobs: Ermotti says AI will lower costs and improve front-to-back processes but needs heavy infrastructure and cyber investment, and expects pressure on revenue as automation spreads; UBS now asks junior-banker candidates to show how they have used AI.
- Supervision: UBS was picked for the UK FCA's second AI Live Testing cohort (April 2026); its 20-F describes an AI framework and policy with risk-appetite metrics, and FINMA's AI governance guidance (December 2024) applies at home.
- Benchmark and a correction: Evident's 2025 index put UBS seventh of 50 banks, and in June 2026 UBS told the Financial Times that a KPMG report's claim that it integrates AI agents across advisory, risk and compliance was 'factually incorrect'.
What is UBS Claves, Red and Microsoft 365 Copilot under the Chief AI Office?
UBS runs AI in a hub-and-spoke model: the Chief AI Office, inside the Group Chief Operating Office, owns strategy, governance, regulatory engagement and capability enablement, while the business divisions and group functions own delivery and outcomes. The group is consolidating its AI platforms into one platform named UBS Claves, which offers models from lightweight to frontier with automated routing to balance performance and token cost. For staff it has deployed an in-house AI assistant, Red, and Microsoft 365 Copilot across the firm, and in its 2Q26 release said all employees can now create their own AI agents. Daniele Magazzeni, previously Chief Analytics Officer at J.P. Morgan, became the first Chief AI Officer on 1 January 2026.[2][1][3][4]
What has UBS done on AI, and when?
- Sep 22, 2026
Ermotti at the BofA conference: AI 'is not for free'[16]
The CEO says AI will reduce costs and improve front-to-back processes but needs heavy infrastructure and cyber investment, expects pressure on top-line revenue, and says UBS wants to use AI to grow in new segments and geographies.
- Sep 7, 2026
AI proficiency added to junior-banker hiring[18]
Candidates for graduate and intern roles in global banking and markets are asked to show how they have used AI to improve outcomes and efficiency; UBS says AI literacy 'complements rather than replaces' academic, analytic and interpersonal skills.
- Aug 10, 2026
Investment in Finster AI[9]
UBS Investment Bank invests in Finster AI's Series B round alongside FactSet, for AI-native research, advisory and capital-markets workflows.
- Jul 29, 2026
2Q26: 560 live use cases, agents for every employee[4][14][13]
UBS reports 560 live AI use cases in production (92% up year on year, 920-plus in development), nine large-scale initiatives, about 18,000 developers using AI with over a quarter of suggestions used in production code, and every employee able to create AI agents; the Oxford-UBS Centre officially launches and two Celent 2026 awards recognise its research and wealth AI.
- Jul 13, 2026
Advisor agents described to Reuters[15]
UBS's head of AI product says advisors have agents that send thousands of alerts a day, such as a maturing annuity to reinvest, drawing on meetings, accounts and e-mail; after an advisor decides, agents can trade and complete transfers. The bank says AI lets advisors spend 70% of their time with clients.
- Jun 12, 2026
UBS rejects KPMG report's claim about its AI agents[19]
The Financial Times, relayed by Finextra, reports that KPMG withdrew a report after claims about AI use at several organisations proved false; UBS called the statement that it integrates AI agents across investment advisory, risk management and compliance monitoring 'factually incorrect'.
- Apr 29, 2026
Q1 2026 call: AI platform used by nearly 90% of US advisor teams[5]
Ermotti says UBS was named best wealth management firm for use of AI in the US at the Financial Times Wealth Tech Awards; the flagship platform delivers client insights to advisors, with nearly 90% of advisor teams using it and millions of AI-driven client interactions.
- Apr 21, 2026
FCA picks UBS for AI Live Testing[17]
UBS is one of eight firms, alongside Barclays, Experian and Lloyds Banking Group (Scottish Widows), in the second cohort of the UK regulator's AI Live Testing programme; testing runs to the end of 2026 with an evaluation report due in Q1 2027.
- Mar 9, 2026
2025 Form 20-F: 380 live use cases[3]
The annual report says UBS had 380 live use cases at the end of 2025, builds its AI strategy around nine large-scale transformational initiatives, supports 1.2 million mobile-banking clients with AI chatbots, and describes an AI framework and policy with risk-appetite metrics and enhanced controls. STAAT Insights delivered more than 20 million insights to US advisors in 2025.
- Feb 4, 2026
Q4 2025 call: a portfolio of large-scale AI programs[11][12]
Ermotti says UBS is investing in large-scale transformational AI programs to raise operational resilience, improve the client experience and lift efficiency, and sees increasingly strong adoption of AI across the firm. Banking Dive notes more than 300 use cases launched in 2025.
- Dec 15, 2025
Technology chief steps down; Group Technology moves under the COO[7]
Mike Dargan leaves at the end of December; from 1 January 2026 Group Technology reports to Group COO Beatriz Martin, with Chris Gelvin interim head. UBS says the change will help prioritise technology and AI initiatives and complete the technology integration.
- Dec 9, 2025
Oxford-UBS Centre for Applied AI announced[6]
A centre led by a newly endowed UBS Professor for Applied AI at Oxford Saïd, supported by 20 researchers, with research on AI and society, AI for business and economy, and AI futures.
- Oct 16, 2025
First Chief AI Officer named[1][10]
Daniele Magazzeni, from J.P. Morgan, to lead the Chief AI Office from 1 January 2026, reporting to the Group Chief Operations and Technology Officer. UBS cites more than 300 live use cases and AI tools for all employees, including M365 Copilot and the AI assistant Red.
- Oct 8, 2025
- Aug 21, 2025
Equity investment in Domino Data Lab[8]
UBS leads an equity investment in Domino and widens a partnership of more than five years; RiskLab, UBS's platform for AI model development and validation built on Domino, is to be rolled out across the bank, with a UBS observer on Domino's board.
- Dec 18, 2024
FINMA publishes AI governance guidance[23]
UBS's home supervisor says most institutions are still early in building AI governance and sets out the model, data, cyber, third-party and legal risks it expects firms to identify, assess, manage and monitor.
Where does UBS use AI today?
| System | What it does | Status | Use case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red and Microsoft 365 Copilot for all employees[1][3] | UBS's in-house AI assistant and Microsoft's Copilot, which the 20-F says are deployed across the firm. | In production | Generative & agentic AI |
| Employee-built AI agents and AI Power Hour[4] | All employees can create their own AI agents, and an hour a week is reserved for building AI skills. | In production | Generative & agentic AI |
| Advisor agents and STAAT Insights (US wealth)[15][3][5] | Agents that alert advisors to client actions and, after approval, execute trades and transfers; STAAT Insights delivered more than 20 million insights to US advisors in 2025 and is used by nearly 90% of advisor teams. See /banks/ubs-usa for the US bank. | In production | Generative & agentic AI |
| Generative AI in investment-bank research[4] | UBS Investment Bank Global Research received the Celent 2026 Model Sell Side Award for GenAI Automation for generative AI across multiple research workflows. | In production | Generative & agentic AI |
| AI chatbots for mobile banking support[3] | AI-powered chatbots give instant mobile-banking support to 1.2 million clients; analytics tools in call centres give agents instant insights. | In production | Customer-facing chatbots |
| AI across the software development lifecycle[4][3] | Around 18,000 developers use AI for code generation, explanation, test automation and requirements; over a quarter of AI suggestions are used directly in production code. | In production | AI-generated code & coding agents |
| RiskLab and the AI model inventory[8][3] | RiskLab, built on Domino Data Lab, is the platform for developing and validating models and is being extended across the bank; the 20-F says AI-specific risks are managed alongside other risk frameworks. | Rolling out | Model risk management |
| UBS Claves single AI platform and Group AI policy[2] | Consolidation of AI platforms into one platform with automated model routing, governed by a Group AI policy and the AI Operating & Risk Committee. | Rolling out | AI governance (general) |
| Finster AI investment[9] | A UBS Investment Bank investment in Finster AI's Series B, alongside FactSet, for AI-native investment-banking workflows. | Announced | Third-party & vendor AI |
Use-case links open the tracker's rules-by-use-case matrix: which documents govern each system type.
What has UBS disclosed in numbers?
| Metric | Value | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Live AI use cases in production | 560 (92% up year on year), with another 920+ applications in development[4] | Jul 29, 2026 |
| Live use cases, end of 2025 | 380[3] | Dec 31, 2025 |
| Live use cases, October 2025 | More than 300[1] | Oct 16, 2025 |
| Large-scale transformational AI initiatives | Nine[4][14] | Jul 29, 2026 |
| Developers using AI | Around 18,000; over one quarter of AI suggestions used directly in production code[4] | Jul 29, 2026 |
| US advisor teams using the flagship AI platform | Nearly 90%[5] | Apr 29, 2026 |
| STAAT Insights delivered to US advisors | More than 20 million insights in 2025[3] | Dec 31, 2025 |
| Clients served by AI chatbots (mobile banking support) | 1.2 million[3] | Dec 31, 2025 |
| Employees who completed AI learning journeys | More than 38,000; 21,000-plus held the AI Citizen badge (28% of employees) by July 2026[2] | Oct 5, 2026 |
| Oxford-UBS Centre for Applied AI | Team of 20 researchers[6] | Dec 9, 2025 |
| Total assets (UBS Group) | US$1,707,284 million[4] | Jun 30, 2026 |
“Artificial intelligence is a top priority for UBS.”[1]
Mike Dargan · Group Chief Operations and Technology Officer · Oct 16, 2025
“At UBS, we're making bold choices to ensure we're an AI-enabled institution – leveraging cutting-edge technologies to deliver smarter, faster, and above all, more responsible innovation that benefits our clients, people, and shareholders”[8]
Stephan Hug · Head of Group Functions Technology · Aug 21, 2025
“we are investing in a portfolio of large-scale transformational AI programs designed to increase our operational resilience, enhance the client experience and unlock higher levels of efficiency and effectiveness across the organization”[11]
Sergio P. Ermotti · Group Chief Executive Officer · Feb 4, 2026
“If we can use that capacity to serve our clients better, gain more share of the wallet, grow faster, grow more, then the impact on costs and jobs is going to be less”[22]
Iqbal Khan · Asia Pacific President · May 27, 2026
“The big winners out of these transformations are going to be the clients.”[16]
Sergio P. Ermotti · Group Chief Executive Officer · Sep 22, 2026
Who runs AI at UBS?
Daniele Magazzeni
Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer (from 1 January 2026; formerly Chief Analytics Officer, J.P. Morgan EMEA and Commercial and Investment Bank)[1][10]
Beatriz Martin
Group Chief Operating Officer (from 1 January 2026; Group Technology reports to her)[7]
Chris Gelvin
Interim Head Group Technology (and Chief Operating Officer, Group Technology)[7]
Mike Dargan
Former Group Chief Operations and Technology Officer (left December 2025 to become CEO of N26)[7][11]
Stephan Hug
Head of Group Functions Technology[8]
Richard James
Head of AI Product[15]
Greg Peirce
Co-Head of Global Banking APAC and AI Business Sponsor, UBS Investment Bank[9]
Iqbal Khan
Asia Pacific President[22]
Ronald Jansen
Former Global Head of the AI lab in global banking (left early 2026 for J.P. Morgan)[11]
Which regulators govern UBS's AI?
| Authority | Why it matters here | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| FINMA | FINMA is UBS's home consolidated supervisor; its Guidance 08/2024 sets out its observations on governance and risk management when financial institutions use AI, and UBS's 20-F notes the Federal Council's February 2025 decision not to adopt a general cross-sector AI law. | |
| UK (BoE / PRA / FCA) | UBS is in the FCA's second AI Live Testing cohort, so its AI applications are being tested under FCA supervision; its London-based Chief AI Officer sits inside the PRA and FCA perimeter for model risk and AI governance. | FCA FS25/5 PRA SS1/23 |
| EU AI Act | UBS's 20-F says 2025 data-protection developments were dominated by new AI rules, including the first enforcement of the EU AI Act; EU-facing credit and client-scoring AI would be high-risk under the Act. | Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 EBA factsheet on the AI Act |
| FSB | UBS is a global systemically important bank deploying AI at group scale with hyperscaler and model-provider dependencies, which is the territory of the FSB's AI monitoring and sound-practices work. | FSB AI sound practices consultation (June 2026) FSB AI monitoring report (Oct 2025) |
| Basel Committee | A firm-wide AI platform, UBS Claves, and data used by agents engage BCBS 239 risk-data aggregation and the Basel principles on third-party risk. | BCBS 239 BCBS Third-Party Risk Principles (Dec 2025) |
| OCC | UBS Bank USA converted to a national bank charter, so the OCC supervises the US bank's use of AI, including third-party and model-risk expectations (covered at /banks/ubs-usa). | OCC Bulletin 2011-12 OCC Bulletin 2023-17 |
| Federal Reserve | UBS's US operations sit under Federal Reserve consolidated supervision for model risk (SR 11-7) and third-party risk-management guidance (SR 23-4). | SR 11-7 SR 23-4 |
What does the public record suggest about UBS's AI strategy?
Analysis by BankingNewsAI from the sources cited on this page. Observations, not advice.
01
The headline metric is use cases, not outcomes
UBS reports live use cases (more than 300, then 380, then 560) and initiative counts rather than group-level savings. The quantified claims in the sources reviewed are narrow: 70% of advisor time with clients, 20 million advisor insights, a quarter of code suggestions in production. Readers should treat the use-case count as a measure of breadth, not return.
02
Technology ownership moved twice in a year
The Chief AI Office sits inside the Group COO's organisation, the technology chief left in December 2025, Group Technology now reports to the COO with an interim head, and the head of the global-banking AI lab left too. UBS's AI programme therefore depends on a small number of leaders while it is also finishing the Credit Suisse integration.
03
AI is positioned as a cost lever that needs investment
Ermotti's September 2026 remarks stress that AI shifts cost between lines, requires infrastructure and cyber spending, and will pressure revenue as automation spreads, which is why he talks of using AI to enter new segments. That is a more guarded framing than headcount-reduction narratives at some peers.
04
Wealth management is where AI is most visible
The disclosed client-facing work is advisor tooling (STAAT Insights, advisor agents) with a human approving transactions, rather than autonomous client-facing products; the group's chatbots serve mobile-banking support. The pattern matches Hug's earlier stated aim of keeping a human in the loop for investment recommendations.
05
Outside claims about UBS's AI need checking
A KPMG report's claim that UBS integrates AI agents across advisory, risk and compliance was pulled after UBS called it factually incorrect. Figures should be traced to UBS's own releases, filings or earnings calls.
Does UBS have a Chief AI Officer?
Yes. Daniele Magazzeni, formerly Chief Analytics Officer for J.P. Morgan's EMEA region and its Commercial and Investment Bank, was announced on 16 October 2025 as UBS's first Chief AI Officer and started on 1 January 2026, based in London. He heads the Chief AI Office, which is part of the Group Chief Operating Office and is responsible for deploying AI tools and processes at scale and keeping standards consistent.
How many AI use cases does UBS have in production?
UBS's second-quarter 2026 release says 560 live AI use cases are in production, up 92% year on year, with another 920-plus applications in development. Earlier figures were more than 300 in October 2025 and 380 at the end of 2025 in its 20-F.
What are Red, Copilot and UBS Claves?
Red is UBS's in-house AI assistant and Microsoft 365 Copilot is Microsoft's assistant; the 20-F says both are deployed across the firm. UBS Claves is the name of the single strategic AI platform UBS is consolidating its AI tools onto, offering models from lightweight to frontier with automated routing that optimises performance and token costs.
How does UBS use AI in the United States?
In US wealth management its STAAT Insights platform delivered more than 20 million insights to advisors in 2025, and nearly 90% of US advisor teams use the flagship platform. UBS's US bank, UBS Bank USA, is covered at /banks/ubs-usa.
Is UBS cutting jobs because of AI?
In the sources reviewed UBS has not attributed announced headcount reductions to AI. Reuters reported that UBS cut about 2,500 full-time staff in the second quarter of 2026, taking its internal workforce below 100,000, a period in which it is completing the Credit Suisse integration. Asia Pacific President Iqbal Khan said in May 2026 that AI will free up capacity and that if it cannot be redeployed for growth there will be implications for costs and jobs.
- UBS appoints Chief AI Officer to drive its AI strategy
- Innovation and AI at UBS (undated page, retrieved 2026-10-05)
- UBS Group AG Annual Report 2025 on Form 20-F
- UBS reports 2Q26 net profit of USD 2.8bn and USD 5.8bn for 1H26 with robust momentum across businesses; Group invested assets at USD 7.3trn
- UBS first-quarter 2026 earnings call prepared remarks and Q&A (Form 6-K)
- The University of Oxford and UBS join forces to launch the Oxford-UBS Centre for Applied AI to pioneer research and innovation
- Changes to UBS's Group Executive Board – Company Announcement
- UBS Invests in Domino Data Lab, Deepening Strategic Partnership to Drive Next Wave of Enterprise AI Innovation
- Finster AI secures investment from UBS to advance AI innovation in investment banking – Company Announcement
- UBS revamps leadership with tech, AI in mind
- UBS deploys AI programs to unlock efficiency
- Earnings call transcript: UBS misses EPS forecast, stock dips in Q4 2025
- Earnings call transcript: UBS posts strong Q2 2026 profit as integration nears end
- UBS flags $3 billion in new buybacks by end-June after forecast-beating quarter
- Wall Street banks ramp up digital assistants in bid to win productivity race
- UBS at Bank of America financials conference: growth meets capital pressure
- FCA announces second cohort for AI Live Testing
- UBS calls for AI literacy from new recruits
- KPMG report contained AI hallucinations about AI use at UBS - FT
- JPMorganChase, Capital One top AI ranking, once again
- AI talent war sees UBS recruit leadership from JPMorgan (undated page, retrieved 2026-10-05)
- UBS' Khan Says AI Will Impact Jobs While Aiding Productivity
- FINMA guidance on governance and risk management when using artificial intelligence
When UBS moves on AI, you'll read it here first.
when one of the banks we cover moves on AI, it is in the next morning's brief · six sourced stories · 7 am ET · free
plus every tracker, bank and agent page update, the morning after · leave any morning