AI Assistant Chat Launch: Starling Unveils Spending Intelligence, Marking UK Banking First with Artificial Intelligence
Gonna save you the cost and hassle of poring over them bank statements or shelling out for a budgeting app. That's thanks to Starling Bank rocking the AI scene with their state-of-the-art Smart Spending AI, harnessing the power of cutting-edge technology to make your monthly expenses a breeze to track.
Starling landed a first for UK banks by merging their app with an AI chatbot, dubbed Spending Intelligence, which uses fancy AI models like Gemini - sister to the big dog, OpenAI's ChatGPT, that's powered by Google's cloud platform.
Spending Intelligence is now ready for action and available to both personal and business customers starting today. You can find it nestled as a search bar at the top of Starling's traditional spending area within their app.
The spending area normally hooks you up with info about what you drop on goods and services, brimming with details on where you spend, when you spend, and how much you spend. It breaks down spending into over 50 categories, allowing you to customize them to your liking.
Spending Intelligence however, takes it up a level, providing you with a detailed breakdown of your spending within a given time frame, like the last month or the trailing year.
Fire off questions like "How much did I spend on beer this month?", "What's my total donations to charities last year?", and Spending Intelligence will get back to you pronto. You can jot down your queries in the search bar or buzz it verbally if that's your thing.
The AI can only extract data from your shiny Starling accounts, so it can't offer advice on where to invest or suggest savings strategies - that's regulated stuff, buddy.
But getting you to ponder over your spending is the darn plan, since being aware of where your money's vanishing is half the battle in staying afloat financially.
No need to worry about giving your dough away either, 'cause using Spending Intelligence is 100% free, courtesy of Starling's chief info officer Harriet Rees who's clear as crystal that there's no intention to monetize it in the future.
Not one to rest on its laurels, Starling has a bigger AI dream in the pipeline. They're aiming to use AI within their banking app to prod you towards whipping their existing money-fiddling features, as well as future add-ons, into shape.
Rees says, "Customers can use AI to fan their curiosity about finances, helping them make informed budgeting decisions and better leverage Starling's suite of money management tools."
So while you're probing your spending habits with the chatbot, Starling is also soaking up valuable insights from you to figure out where they can unleash more smart AI solutions in the future.
Don't rule out potential future updates that might even include AI suggestions on where you could chop your spending if you ask the right questions.
For now, it's all about spending with Spending Intelligence, but the soon-to-be insanely smart AI at Starling Bank has BIG plans up its sleeve.
- Starling Bank's Smart Spending AI, known as Spending Intelligence, integrates with their app, utilizing advanced AI models like Gemini to simplify expense tracking for both personal and business customers.
- Spending Intelligence offers a detailed breakdown of your spending over customizable time periods, such as the last month or the trailing year, and allows users to ask specific questions, like "How much did I spend on beer this month?" or "What's my total donations to charities last year?"
- Although Spending Intelligence can't provide investment advice or savings strategies due to regulatory restrictions, its primary purpose is to help users understand their spending patterns, which is essential for financial management.
- Starling Bank aims to further leverage AI within their banking app to enhance their existing money management features and future add-ons, with the ultimate goal of using AI to help customers make informed budgeting decisions and better utilize their tools.
