Indian bank CEOs call for AI pilots to become real-world banking tools

During a panel at one outlet BFSI Insight Summit 2026 in Mumbai, Rajiv Anand, R Subramaniakumar and V Vaidyanathan argued that Indian banks should transition from AI pilots to full-scale implementations. They noted that the RBI expects banks to shift from experimentation to deployment and that AI can enhance lending by processing more data and analysing unstructured inputs such as shop photos and call recordings.

While AI can increase efficiency, the CEOs cautioned that any gains must be passed on to customers through faster services and lower costs. They stressed the need for clear AI policies, robust audit trails, and safeguards against model failures. Finally, they pointed out that banks are allocating roughly 10% of operating expenditure to technology, underscoring a long-term commitment to digital transformation.