United Overseas Bank:
the AI strategy, sourced.

Last updated Oct 24, 2026 · 16 dated moves · 20 sources

Singapore's third-largest bank treats AI as a workforce programme first: Microsoft Copilot for more than 30,000 staff, more than 300 use cases, AI training for almost every employee and a pledge to keep hiring graduates, while it builds a framework with an external auditor before it puts any figure on what AI is worth.

How is UOB using AI?

United Overseas Bank (UOB), Singapore's third-largest bank with S$572,061 million in total assets at the end of 2025, runs its AI programme mainly through its workforce. More than 30,000 employees have Microsoft Copilot and generate more than 400,000 prompts a month, and more than 300 AI use cases have been rolled out, the bank said at its second-quarter 2026 results; its 2025 annual report says about 90% of employees group-wide have been upskilled in generative AI and its Innovation Academy trains more than 31,000 colleagues in AI. Customer-facing AI sits in the UOB TMRW app, where one in two customers engage with AI-driven insights and nudges, and the bank says it will soon roll out generative AI advisory for private-banking clients. UOB does not yet publish an AI value figure: it has hired an external auditor to build a measurement framework, due by the end of 2026, and intends to report the results regularly. On jobs, Deputy Chairman and CEO Wee Ee Cheong says AI should augment rather than replace staff; headcount fell 2.6% to 31,222 in 2025, which the bank attributed to natural workforce movements, and in October 2026 it said it would hire 1,000 graduates in Singapore within a year. In 2026 it signed AI and technology memorandums with FPT (May) and AWS (October), and it is a member of the MAS and ABS taskforce on AI-driven cyber threats formed in July 2026.

Lead bank

United Overseas Bank Limited

Total assets (group, as reported, Dec 31, 2025)

S$572,061 million total assets[1]

Charter

Singapore bank group; United Overseas Bank Limited is a Singapore-licensed bank supervised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), with banking subsidiaries in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and China

Headquarters

Singapore

Flagship platform

Enterprise GenAI Platform, Microsoft Copilot and UOB TMRW

AI leadership

Wee Ee Cheong · Lawrence Goh · Leong Yung Chee · Alvin Eng · Federico Burgoni · Dean Tong · Susan Hwee · Janet Young · Chan Kok Seong · Gillian Chua · Kevin Lam · Victor Ngo

  • Scale of staff AI: more than 30,000 employees have Microsoft Copilot, staff send more than 400,000 Copilot prompts a month and more than 300 AI use cases have been rolled out (Q2 2026 results, August 2026).
  • Value not yet disclosed: UOB has engaged an external auditor to build a framework for measuring AI's financial impact, expected by the end of 2026, with a view to reporting the numbers regularly; DBS already publishes such a figure.
  • Training: the 2025 annual report says about 90% of employees group-wide were upskilled in generative AI and the Innovation Academy trains more than 31,000 colleagues in AI; an organisation-wide AI upskilling and reskilling initiative launched on 1 October 2025.
  • Customers: on UOB TMRW one in two customers engage with customised insights and nudges, digital wealth accounts for 37% of unit trust sales, and generative AI advisory for private-banking clients is due to roll out soon (2025 annual report).
  • Jobs: the CEO says AI should augment, not replace, people; UOB told Bloomberg in January 2026 it was not making AI-related job cuts, headcount fell 849 to 31,222 in 2025, and in October 2026 it committed to hiring 1,000 graduates in Singapore within a year.
  • Partners: Microsoft (Copilot since 2023), Personetics (TMRW personalisation since 2018), Tookitaki (machine-learning anti-money-laundering since 2018), FPT (AI MoU, May 2026) and AWS (hybrid cloud and Amazon Bedrock MoU, October 2026).
  • Regulators: UOB is one of 24 consortium members behind MAS's MindForge AI risk-management toolkit (March 2026) and a member of the AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce (ACT) set up by MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore in July 2026.
  • Governance: UOB says its generative AI tools follow MAS FEAT principles and Project MindForge, with human-in-the-loop review of outputs; MAS's final AI Risk Management Guidelines (October 2026) apply from October 2027.
  • Leaders: Wee Ee Cheong (Deputy Chairman and CEO) fronts the AI message; Lawrence Goh heads Group Technology and Operations; Alvin Eng is head of enterprise AI in the Innovation Group; Group CFO Leong Yung Chee also oversees Innovation.

What is Enterprise GenAI Platform, Microsoft Copilot and UOB TMRW?

UOB's staff layer is Microsoft Copilot, which it began trialling with 300 employees in October 2023 as the first Singapore bank in Microsoft's early access programme and which more than 30,000 employees now use, plus a Build-Your-Own-Bot service on which business units create chatbots over their own documents in a governed environment. Both sit on what the bank calls its Enterprise GenAI Platform (EGP), which UOB said in October 2026 it would explore extending with Amazon Bedrock under a memorandum of understanding with AWS for a dedicated hybrid-cloud environment in Singapore. Capability building runs through an Innovation Group set up in 2025, the UOB Innovation Academy and an AI and Data Analytics Centre of Excellence. The customer-facing layer is the UOB TMRW app, which uses AI and machine learning for personalised insights and nudges (one in two customers engage with them) and an AI merchant recommender behind its Rewards+ deals.[2][15][20][19][1]

Which technology partners does UOB work with on AI?

UOB's public AI record names five outside partners. Microsoft supplies Copilot, which UOB began trialling in 2023 and now gives to more than 30,000 staff. Personetics has powered personalised insights on its digital banking apps since 2018, and Tookitaki's anti-money-laundering suite carries machine-learning features co-created with UOB. In 2026 UOB signed memorandums with FPT (May) on AI and legacy modernisation and with AWS (October) on hybrid cloud and Amazon Bedrock. The bank also takes part in MAS's MindForge consortium. The sources reviewed for this page did not include a patent search.[2][15][3][4][12][19][10]

PartnerWhat it isStatusDate
MicrosoftMicrosoft 365 Copilot for employees, from a 300-person early-access trial to more than 30,000 staffIn production2023-10-03[2][15]
PersoneticsAI personalisation engine behind TMRW insights and the Auto-Save featureIn production2022-11-02[3]
TookitakiMachine-learning features co-created for name screening and transaction monitoringIn production2018-08-24[4]
FPTMoU on AI and digital innovation, legacy modernisation and pilots in VietnamAnnounced2026-05-29[12]
Amazon Web ServicesMoU on a dedicated hybrid cloud in Singapore and Amazon Bedrock for Gen AI applicationsAnnounced2026-10-09[19]

What has UOB done on AI, and when?

UOB's dated AI moves by year2018–2023Aug 24 2018Machine learning added to anti-…Nov 02 2022AI Auto-Save on TMRW with Perso…Oct 03 2023First Singapore bank to trial M…20242025Oct 01Organisation-wide AI upskilling…Nov 12Wee Ee Cheong: AI should help p…Nov 13Head of enterprise AI: 30,000 s…2026Jan 08Bloomberg: UOB not making AI-re…Mar 092025 annual report: Innovation…Mar 20UOB among 24 participants in MA…Apr 23Headcount fell 2.6% in 2025May 29AI and technology MoU with FPTJul 29UOB joins the MAS-ABS taskforce…Aug 07Q2 2026 results: 400,000 Copilo…Oct 07MAS issues final AI Risk Manage…Oct 081,000 graduate hires and AI-coa…Oct 09AWS MoU for hybrid cloud and Am…
Figure 1 · UOB's AI moves by year, from the timeline below. Before 2024 is collapsed into one column. Filled boxes are the current year. Every entry cites its source in the list at the end of the page.
  • Oct 9, 2026

    AWS MoU for hybrid cloud and Amazon Bedrock[19]

    UOB and AWS plan a dedicated cloud environment in Singapore for a hybrid infrastructure model across UOB's five ASEAN markets, and will explore Amazon Bedrock on top of UOB's Enterprise GenAI Platform for conversational banking and employee tools.

  • Oct 8, 2026

    1,000 graduate hires and AI-coached leadership training[17][18]

    At its Better U Festival the CEO said that while AI can do many routine entry-level tasks, UOB will hire 1,000 graduates in Singapore within a year, mainly in personal financial services and anti-money laundering, and train 5,500 managers to lead in an AI-enabled workplace by end-2027 using an AI-enabled coaching and role-play platform.

  • Oct 7, 2026

    MAS issues final AI Risk Management Guidelines[16]

    The guidelines apply to all financial institutions, including UOB, and take effect on 7 October 2027 for sections 3 and 4 and 7 October 2028 for sections 5 and 6; they cover board oversight, lifecycle controls and accountability for third-party AI.

  • Aug 7, 2026

    Q2 2026 results: 400,000 Copilot prompts a month and an AI measurement framework[15][14]

    Group CFO Leong Yung Chee said more than 30,000 employees have Copilot, more than 300 use cases are live and staff generate more than 400,000 prompts a month; UOB has engaged an external auditor to build a framework for measuring AI's impact by year-end and does not yet put a dollar figure on the benefits.

  • Jul 29, 2026

    UOB joins the MAS-ABS taskforce on AI-driven cyber risk[13]

    MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore launched the AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce (ACT), whose members include DBS, OCBC and UOB, to share AI cybersecurity use cases, run proof-of-concept trials of AI-enabled defensive tools and draft guidance.

  • May 29, 2026

    AI and technology MoU with FPT[12]

    UOB and Vietnam's FPT agreed to explore AI and digital innovation in banking, legacy modernisation and pilots in Vietnam and other markets, with a detailed plan due within 90 days; the release says UOB aims to accelerate adoption of generative and agentic AI.

  • Apr 23, 2026

    Headcount fell 2.6% in 2025[11]

    The Business Times reported UOB's staff fell by 849 to 31,222 at end-2025. Head of group HR Dean Tong said the change primarily reflected natural workforce movements; the bank did not attribute it to AI, though he said AI adoption had helped teams work more efficiently.

  • Mar 20, 2026

    UOB among 24 participants in MAS MindForge AI risk toolkit[10]

    The toolkit covers traditional, generative and agentic AI; participants include DBS, Julius Baer, OCBC, Standard Chartered and UOB, and MAS is setting up an AI risk-management workgroup under BuildFin.ai.

  • Mar 9, 2026

    2025 annual report: Innovation Group, 31,000 trained, Gen AI advisory to come[1]

    The report records the creation of the Innovation Group and UOB Innovation Academy in 2025, about 90% of employees upskilled in Gen AI, one in two TMRW customers engaging with AI-driven insights, a Gen AI chatbot that retrieves wealth advisory updates for bankers, and plans to roll out Gen AI advisory for private-banking clients.

  • Jan 8, 2026

    Bloomberg: UOB not making AI-related job cuts[9]

    OCBC and UOB said they were not making AI-related job cuts; UOB had given all employees access to Microsoft Copilot and deployed more than 300 AI use cases. Singapore's three banks are retraining all 35,000 of their domestic staff over one to two years.

  • Nov 13, 2025

    Head of enterprise AI: 30,000 staff have Gen AI, 20,000 trained[8]

    Alvin Eng told CNA that UOB had enabled Gen AI across the whole bank for 30,000 staff, had trained more than 20,000 people in Gen AI, and was looking at roughly 10 to 15% of jobs being repurposed in an initial stage, while cautioning that the bank did not have actual numbers.

  • Nov 12, 2025

    Wee Ee Cheong: AI should help people do more, not replace them[7]

    In a Singapore FinTech Festival keynote, the CEO said data and AI will make finance more intelligent, predictive and inclusive, that UOB had set up an academy for AI upskilling for its 32,000 employees, and that regulation and standards need harmonising for AI to scale.

  • Oct 1, 2025

    Organisation-wide AI upskilling and reskilling initiative[5][6]

    All employees are to gain foundational generative AI and automation skills; UOB signed an MoU with the Institute of Banking and Finance, Workforce Singapore and Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and its new Innovation Academy will offer courses in AI, data and blockchain to all staff.

  • Oct 3, 2023

    First Singapore bank to trial Microsoft 365 Copilot[2]

    UOB joined Microsoft's early access programme, giving 300 employees in branches, customer service and technology and operations access to Microsoft 365 Copilot from October 2023, as part of a broader generative AI strategy for the bank.

  • Nov 2, 2022

    AI Auto-Save on TMRW with Personetics[3]

    UOB launched an AI-driven automated savings feature on TMRW in Indonesia, built with Personetics; the bank said the partnership had delivered more than 150 million personalised insights to customers in four markets since 2018.

  • Aug 24, 2018

    Machine learning added to anti-money-laundering checks with Tookitaki[4]

    UOB co-created machine-learning features for Tookitaki's Anti-Money Laundering Suite and was using the system for name screening and transaction monitoring after a six-month pilot, said then head of group compliance Victor Ngo.

Where does UOB use AI today?

UOB's AI systems on the status ladder from announced to in productionANNOUNCEDPILOTROLLING OUTIN PRODUCTIONMicrosoft Copilot for employeesBuild-Your-Own-Bot on the Enterprise GenAI…Gen AI chatbot for wealth bankersGen AI advisory for private-banking clientsUOB TMRW personalised insights, nudges and…Machine-learning name screening and transac…Real-time fraud surveillance and remote-acc…AI-enabled coaching for 5,500 managersAWS hybrid cloud and Amazon BedrockFPT collaboration on AI and modernisationACT taskforce on AI-driven cyber threatsFEAT-aligned Gen AI governance and MindForg…
Figure 2 · Where AI runs at UOB, and how far along. 8 of 12 named systems are in production; the rest are rolling out, piloted or announced. Status is as described in the cited source at its date.
SystemWhat it doesStatusUse case
Microsoft Copilot for employees[15][20][14]Copilot embedded in Microsoft 365 for document drafting, summarisation, research and translation, with curated prompt libraries; more than 30,000 employees enabled and more than 400,000 prompts a month. In branches staff use it to supplement responses to customers.In productionGenerative & agentic AI
Build-Your-Own-Bot on the Enterprise GenAI Platform[20][19]Business units upload internal documents and co-develop domain chatbots with power users for policy, onboarding and operational questions; the Daita IQ bot generates business metadata from the data dictionary.In productionGenerative & agentic AI
Gen AI chatbot for wealth bankers[1]A Gen AI chatbot helps bankers quickly retrieve wealth advisory updates for client servicing; UOB reports an uplift in overall productivity from these tools.In productionCustomer-facing chatbots
Gen AI advisory for private-banking clients[1]UOB says it will soon roll out generative AI advisory for private-banking clients and onboard them onto UOB TMRW.AnnouncedGenerative & agentic AI
UOB TMRW personalised insights, nudges and Rewards+ recommender[1][3]AI and machine learning drive customised insights and nudges (one in two TMRW customers engage with them) and a merchant recommender model curating more than 1,000 deals for more than one million Rewards+ users; Personetics has powered UOB's personalised insights since 2018 and built the Auto-Save feature.In productionCustomer-facing chatbots
Machine-learning name screening and transaction monitoring[4]Co-created machine-learning features in Tookitaki's Anti-Money Laundering Suite, used for name screening and transaction monitoring beyond rules-based systems.In productionAML / KYC
Real-time fraud surveillance and remote-access blocking[1]Real-time fraud surveillance on customer transactions, an industry-first measure to block unauthorised remote device access by scammers, and digital tokens replacing SMS one-time passwords; the chairman cites AI and deepfakes as making scams harder to detect.In productionFraud detection
AI-enabled coaching for 5,500 managers[18][17]The Better Leader Programme uses an AI-enabled coaching and role-play platform customised to UOB's leadership competencies, giving managers immediate feedback and indicative scores; target 5,500 managers by end-2027.Rolling outGenerative & agentic AI
AWS hybrid cloud and Amazon Bedrock[19]MoU to explore a dedicated cloud environment in Singapore with data-residency controls for five ASEAN markets, Amazon Bedrock for Gen AI applications and AI-powered customer engagement.AnnouncedThird-party & vendor AI
FPT collaboration on AI and modernisation[12]MoU covering AI in banking, legacy modernisation, development productivity and pilots in Vietnam and other regional markets.AnnouncedThird-party & vendor AI
ACT taskforce on AI-driven cyber threats[13]Member of the MAS-ABS taskforce that shares AI cybersecurity use cases, runs proof-of-concept trials of AI-enabled defensive tools and drafts industry guidance.In productionCybersecurity
FEAT-aligned Gen AI governance and MindForge participation[20][10]UOB says its Gen AI enablement follows MAS FEAT principles and Project MindForge, with reference grounding, human-in-the-loop review and feedback loops; it is one of 24 MindForge toolkit participants.In productionAI governance (general)

Use-case links open the tracker's rules-by-use-case matrix: which documents govern each system type.

What has UOB disclosed in numbers?

MetricValueAs of
Total assetsS$572,061 million[1]Dec 31, 2025
Employees with Microsoft CopilotMore than 30,000[15][14]Aug 7, 2026
Copilot promptsMore than 400,000 a month[15]Aug 7, 2026
AI use cases rolled outMore than 300[15][9]Aug 7, 2026
Employees upskilled in Gen AIAbout 90% group-wide[1]Dec 31, 2025
Colleagues trained in AI by the Innovation AcademyMore than 31,000 across ASEAN[1]Dec 31, 2025
TMRW customers engaging with customised insights and nudgesOne in two[1]Dec 31, 2025
Digital wealth share of unit trust sales37%[1]Dec 31, 2025
Rewards+ on TMRW (AI merchant recommender)More than 1,000 deals; more than one million customers[1]Dec 31, 2025
Group headcount31,222 at end-2025, down 849 (2.6%) from 32,071[11][1]Dec 31, 2025
Graduates to be hired in Singapore1,000 by October 2027[17][18]Oct 8, 2026
Managers in AI-era leadership programme5,500 by end-2027[18]Oct 8, 2026
Personetics personalised insights deliveredMore than 150 million since 2018, in four markets[3]Nov 2, 2022
Initial Microsoft 365 Copilot trial300 employees[2]Oct 3, 2023
Employees trained in Gen AI (head of enterprise AI)More than 20,000; roughly 10-15% of roles potentially repurposed in an initial stage[8]Nov 13, 2025

“So, do we stop hiring? No. We will continue to hire because you still need humans to sell, to make decisions.”[17]

Wee Ee Cheong · Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer · Oct 8, 2026

“At UOB, we see AI as a transformative capability that can help us become a more adaptive, intelligent and responsive organisation.”[19]

Lawrence Goh · Head, Group Technology and Operations · Oct 9, 2026

“After all, when it comes to leadership successions, we are looking to pass the baton to people and not machines,”[7]

Wee Ee Cheong · Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer · Nov 12, 2025

“Inaction is not really an option for us or anybody,”[9]

Alvin Eng · Head of Enterprise AI, Innovation Group · Jan 8, 2026

“We tell our staff, you need to be with us on this journey - you need to embrace this technology and learn with us. We'll provide you with the tools.”[8]

Alvin Eng · Head of Enterprise AI, Innovation Group · Nov 13, 2025

“Through our Better U Pivot programme and GenAI initiatives, we are clear that success is not measured by headcount savings alone, but by shared outcomes that strengthen capability, engagement and long-term employability.”[1]

Dean Tong · Head, Group Human Resources · Mar 9, 2026

“With the use of AI, our people can do more and do it faster.”[6]

Wee Ee Cheong · Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer · Oct 1, 2025

“This MoU reflects UOB's strategic intent to build a future-ready bank through strong technology foundations, responsible AI and purposeful partnerships.”[12]

Lawrence Goh · Head, Group Technology and Operations · May 29, 2026

“Banking is people business.”[14]

Wee Ee Cheong · Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer · Aug 7, 2026

“Generative AI has been at the forefront of emerging technologies and we see tremendous potential in integrating it into UOB's daily operations.”[2]

Lawrence Goh · Chief Operating Officer and Head of Group Infrastructure Platform Services, Group Technology and Operations · Oct 3, 2023

Who runs AI at UOB?

Wee Ee Cheong

Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer[1][7][17]

Lawrence Goh

Head, Group Technology and Operations (oversees global technology infrastructure and operations; signed the AWS MoU)[1][19]

Leong Yung Chee

Group Chief Financial Officer (since 2025), overseeing Finance, Treasury, Investor Relations and Innovation; set out UOB's AI figures at the Q2 2026 results[1][15]

Alvin Eng

Head of Enterprise AI, Innovation Group[8][9]

Federico Burgoni

Head, Group Strategy and Transformation (coordinates the group's transformation programmes)[1]

Dean Tong

Head, Group Human Resources (leads AI upskilling and the Better U programmes)[1][6][18]

Susan Hwee

Head, Group Retail (since September 2024; responsible for retail digital transformation; previously Head of Group Technology and Operations)[1]

Janet Young

Head, Group Channels and Digitalisation, Strategic Communications and Brand[1]

Chan Kok Seong

Group Chief Risk Officer (heads governance, risk and compliance)[1]

Gillian Chua

Head of Strategic Alliances and Sourcing, Group Technology and Operations (signed the FPT MoU)[12]

Kevin Lam

Head of UOB TMRW and Group Digital Banking (as named in November 2022)[3]

Victor Ngo

Chief Executive Officer, UOB (Vietnam); as head of group compliance he led the 2018 machine-learning anti-money-laundering work with Tookitaki[1][4]

Which regulators govern UOB's AI?

The regulators around UOB's AIUOBMAS0 documentsBank Negara Malaysia0 documentsBasel Committee2 documents
Figure 3 · The regulatory perimeter. Each authority links to its tracker page; the number is how many of its documents this page cites. Solid lines are the bank's direct supervisors; dashed lines are consumer, market and global standard-setters that reach it through its activities.
AuthorityWhy it matters hereDocuments
MASUOB's home supervisor. UOB took part in MAS's MindForge AI risk-management toolkit (March 2026), sits on the AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce that MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore formed in July 2026, and says its Gen AI tools follow MAS's FEAT principles; MAS's final AI Risk Management Guidelines of October 2026 apply to it from October 2027.
Bank Negara MalaysiaUOB (Malaysia) is one of the group's banking subsidiaries, and Malaysia is one of the four markets where UOB has delivered Personetics AI insights; the AWS collaboration is designed so data and systems can meet each of UOB's five ASEAN markets' regulatory and data-residency requirements, Malaysia included.
Basel CommitteeA dedicated hybrid cloud with AWS, Amazon Bedrock on the Enterprise GenAI Platform and group-wide data for AI models engage the Basel Committee's third-party risk principles and BCBS 239 risk-data principles; UOB's internal audit says it follows the Basel Committee's standard for internal audit in banks.BCBS Third-Party Risk Principles (Dec 2025)
BCBS 239

Side by side: MAS AI Risk Management Guidelines vs SR 26-2 · all comparisons.

What does the public record suggest about UOB's AI strategy?

Analysis by BankingNewsAI from the sources cited on this page. Observations, not advice.

01

A value figure is coming, built by an auditor

DBS has published an AI economic-value figure since 2021 and OCBC publishes a technology budget instead. UOB has chosen a third route: an external auditor is building a measurement framework, due by the end of 2026, after which it plans to report AI impact regularly. The first number, and how it is defined, will be the clearest test of what 300-plus use cases deliver.

02

Adoption is the disclosed metric

UOB's record is about reach rather than outcomes: 30,000-plus Copilot users, 400,000 prompts a month, about 90% of staff upskilled. Task-level results of the kind OCBC reports (10 days to an hour) or DBS reports (model counts and value) are largely absent from UOB's public material.

03

Hiring is part of the AI message

Each AI announcement since 2025 has been paired with a workforce commitment: upskilling for all staff, 1,000 graduate hires, an AI-coached programme for 5,500 managers. Headcount still fell 2.6% in 2025, which the bank put down to natural movements, so the hiring pledges are the figures to track against future headcount.

04

Customer-facing generative AI trails the staff rollout

TMRW's personalisation is classic machine learning built with Personetics since 2018, and the generative AI advisory for private-banking clients was still described as coming soon in the 2025 annual report. The AWS memorandum names conversational banking as an area to explore, which suggests client-facing Gen AI is the next step rather than a current one.

Which leader rankings does UOB appear in?

4 of the computed leaders rankings include UOB, each ranked from the same sourced bank pages.

How does UOB compare with its peers?

Its peer group on this site, by business model and size:

How is UOB using AI?

UOB uses AI mainly for employee productivity (Microsoft Copilot for more than 30,000 staff and chatbots that business units build on its Enterprise GenAI Platform), for customer personalisation in the UOB TMRW app, for anti-money-laundering screening and fraud surveillance, and for staff training. It says more than 300 AI use cases have been rolled out across the bank.

Who leads AI at UOB?

Deputy Chairman and CEO Wee Ee Cheong sets the message that AI should augment staff. Lawrence Goh heads Group Technology and Operations and signed the AWS and FPT agreements; Alvin Eng is head of enterprise AI in the Innovation Group, created in 2025; Group CFO Leong Yung Chee oversees Innovation and presents UOB's AI figures to investors; Dean Tong runs the AI upskilling programmes as head of group HR.

Is UOB cutting jobs because of AI?

UOB says it is not making AI-related job cuts. Its headcount fell by 849 to 31,222 in 2025, which it attributed to natural workforce movements, and in October 2026 it said it would hire 1,000 graduates in Singapore within a year. Its head of enterprise AI said in November 2025 that roughly 10 to 15% of roles might be repurposed in an initial stage.

Does UOB use Microsoft Copilot?

Yes. UOB was the first Singapore bank to trial Microsoft 365 Copilot, starting with 300 employees in October 2023. By August 2026 more than 30,000 employees had Copilot and staff were generating more than 400,000 prompts a month.

How much value does UOB get from AI?

UOB has not published a figure. At its Q2 2026 results it said it had engaged an external auditor to build a framework for measuring AI's financial impact, expected by the end of 2026, and hoped to report the numbers regularly in its financial and annual reports.

What is UOB's partnership with AWS?

On 9 October 2026 UOB and Amazon Web Services signed a memorandum of understanding to explore a dedicated cloud environment in Singapore as part of a hybrid infrastructure model for UOB's five ASEAN markets, AI-powered customer engagement, and the use of Amazon Bedrock on UOB's existing Enterprise GenAI Platform.

How does UOB TMRW use AI?

UOB TMRW uses AI and machine learning for personalised insights and nudges, which one in two customers engage with, and an AI merchant recommender that curates more than 1,000 deals on Rewards+. UOB has delivered personalised insights with Personetics since 2018, and UOB plans to bring generative AI advisory to private-banking clients on the app.

How does UOB work with MAS on AI?

UOB is one of 24 consortium members behind MAS's MindForge AI risk-management toolkit (March 2026) and a member of the AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce set up by MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore in July 2026. MAS's final AI Risk Management Guidelines, issued on 7 October 2026, apply to UOB from 7 October 2027.

  1. UOB Annual Report 2025
    United Overseas Bank · Mar 9, 2026
  2. UOB pioneers trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot Generative AI tool across multiple business functions to enhance productivity and collaboration
    United Overseas Bank · Oct 3, 2023
  3. UOB and Personetics launch AI-driven automated savings feature on its TMRW mobile banking app – the first of its kind in Southeast Asia
    United Overseas Bank · Nov 2, 2022
  4. UOB, Tookitaki team up on machine learning to fight money laundering
    The Business Times · Aug 24, 2018
  5. UOB Better U Festival 2025 | UOB Group
    United Overseas Bank · Oct 1, 2025
  6. UOB rolls out initiative to help employees upskill in use of AI to do more and be faster
    The Straits Times · Oct 1, 2025
  7. AI should help people do more and do it faster, not replace them: UOB's Wee Ee Cheong
    The Straits Times · Nov 12, 2025
  8. DBS, UOB will focus on reskilling staff in AI instead of cutting jobs, say top execs
    CNA · Nov 13, 2025
  9. Inside Singapore's AI bootcamp to retrain 35,000 bankers
    The Straits Times (Bloomberg) · Jan 8, 2026
  10. MAS launches AI risk toolkit for financial institutions with case studies from DBS, peers
    The Business Times · Mar 20, 2026
  11. DBS, OCBC, UOB shed nearly 3,000 jobs in 2025 amid restructuring, productivity push
    The Business Times · Apr 23, 2026
  12. UOB and FPT sign MoU to advance AI, technology and financial innovation
    United Overseas Bank · May 29, 2026
  13. MAS, ABS launch finance sector taskforce to tackle AI-driven cyber risks
    Retail Banker International via Yahoo Finance · Jul 29, 2026
  14. Earnings call transcript: UOB posts steady Q2 2026 results as revenue beats forecasts
    Investing.com · Aug 7, 2026
  15. 5 takeaways from Singapore banks' Q2 results: diverging outlooks, China tax rules emerge as new watchpoint
    The Business Times · Aug 8, 2026
  16. MAS rolls out AI risk management guidelines for Singapore's financial sector
    The Business Times · Oct 7, 2026
  17. UOB to create 1,000 jobs for fresh grads even as concerns rise over AI's impact on entry-level roles
    The Straits Times · Oct 8, 2026
  18. 'We will not stop hiring': UOB CEO on plans to recruit 1,000 graduates as AI reshapes entry-level work
    The Business Times · Oct 8, 2026
  19. UOB and AWS announce multi-year strategic collaboration
    United Overseas Bank · Oct 9, 2026
  20. Gen AI Enablement | UOB @ SFF 2025 (undated page, retrieved 2026-10-24)
    United Overseas Bank · Oct 24, 2026

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