In terms of where artificial intelligence has proven to have the biggest positive influence on client engagement, asset managers say AI-powered support and Q&A and automated client communication and reporting have been instrumental.
Respondents to the research by Clearwater Analytics also pointed to personalization at scale, enhanced transparency and timeliness and sentiment analysis as things to which AI can be advantageous.
The research, covering insurance asset managers, hedge funds, private markets specialists, and general asset managers, found that every respondent has seen an increase in client inquiries about their use of AI.
More than two-fifths (43 per cent) of asset managers say that between a quarter and half of their client base ask about how AI is employed; while two-fifths say between 10 per cent and 24 per cent investigate how they use the technology.
Research participants agree that investors and institutional allocators are increasingly scrutinizing how fund managers integrate AI, with many more likely to invest in firms that allocate a meaningful budget to AI research and implementation.
More than a third (34 per cent) expect this trend to increase dramatically over the next three years and 57 per cent say it will increase slightly. Just under one in 10 (9 per cent) say it will stay the same.
The research reveals client sentiment is high regarding how AI is deployed by asset managers, with 85 per cent of respondents saying their investors’ perception of their AI use is positive and another 10 per cent expressing that it is very positive.
Souvik Das, chief technology officer at Clearwater Analytics, says: “AI is transforming the client–manager relationship from a periodic, product-led interaction into a continuous, data-rich partnership where transparency, customization and demonstrable analytical edge are key to winning and retaining institutional mandates.”
When asked in which areas the use of AI is most important to their clients, the majority of asset managers claimed that data governance, accuracy and enterprise security highly, while automation and human intervention were ranked lower.