JPMorgan has allocated nearly $2 billion for AI this year, Matthew McCown, executive director of the data and analytics team at J.P. Morgan Payments, said at the FinAi Banking Summit 2026 in Denver on March 3.
The bank announced last month it expects to spend $19.8 billion on tech in 2026, up 10% year over year, to maintain its competitive edge and increase efficiency.
“The incremental $2 billion is earmarked specifically for AI,” McCown said. “We have 2,000 AI and ML professionals within the firm, and over 400 models live in production.”
He said top uses of AI within JPMorgan include:
- KYC;
- Software development; and
- Sandboxing new applications.
AI allows the bank to quickly develop applications, test them and ship them to customers or other teams, McCown told FinAi News after the panel discussion.
“It helps us reduce time to market exponentially,” he said, adding that the bank is taking a disciplined approach on its AI spend.
Functions with an immediate impact on operations or have measurable return on investment are targeted for AI, he said.
“The old Facebook mantra of moving fast and breaking things is just not what we do,” he said. “We tend to move a bit slower, but more methodically.”
Read more coverage from FinAi Banking Summit here.
