Who’s Winning the War for AI Talent on Wall Street?

In the rapidly evolving landscape of Wall Street, artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a disruptive force with the potential to reshape the industry. AI holds the potential to revolutionize operations by streamlining processes, improving accuracy, and unlocking new revenue streams. As banks and financial institutions strive to harness the power of AI, the war for talent in this field has intensified. The bank that embraces AI successfully will gain a significant competitive advantage.?

Wall Street has a rich history of using data and technology to gain a competitive edge. From pioneers like The O'Connor Group and Riskmetrics to successful hedge funds like Renaissance Technologies and Two Sigma Investments, the finance industry has long embraced quantitative techniques and sophisticated algorithms and AI is poised to write the next chapter of FinTech Innovation.?

Before you can transform the industry with AI, you have to attract and retain the best AI talent. We wanted to understand who is hiring and who is losing talent so we analyzed hiring and attrition trends of AI talent of banks including JP Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Wells Fargo and Bank of America.

[ Explore the data behind our analysis here ]

Here’s are 3 key takeaways the data uncovered:?

1. Wall Street Has An AI Attrition Problem. Over the past 24 months JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, BofA, Citi, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America have hired 4,104 AI employees, and lost 2,861.? This means that for every 3 AI people these banks hire they lose 2.
2. The attrition problem is most pronounced at Morgan Stanley and least pronounced at JP Morgan. Morgan Stanley has lost almost as much AI talent as it has hired; 393 hired compared to 314 departed over a 24 month period. JP Morgan has the healthiest AI attrition rate among the banks, the world’s largest bank has hired 1,475 and lost 887.
3. Amazon is winning the war for AI talent in finance. Surprisingly, it is not a traditional Wall Street firm that leads the pack in attracting AI talent. Amazon has lured more AI talent away from Wall Street than anyone else, hiring 153 people. Google comes second with 121, followed by Microsoft with 94. The tech giants' ability to create an enticing environment for AI professionals highlights their potential to disrupt the investment banking sector. Could this pave the way for an AI-enhanced challenger investment bank? The possibility remains intriguing and warrants our attention.?

Could Amazon build a challenger investment bank? If AI emerges as a significant competitive advantage in investment banking, then it’s not inconceivable that Amazon, Google or Microsoft could create a challenger investment bank. The three tech giants are the top destinations for AI talent leaving Wall Street. Amazon, in particular, has some history entering highly regulated new markets like healthcare. And Jeff Bezos began his career at hedge fund DE Shaw. The three tech giants have acquired approximately 630 companies, and have a deep, hard-earned understanding of what makes M&A work. Could that translate into an AI-enhanced challenger investment bank? It’s not inconceivable. Stay tuned.?

“For a long time tech talent working in a non tech industry hasn't had a seat at the strategy table. It’s not their company. Without a massive cultural overhaul they’re a huge flight risk. We’re seeing that with this data, and it can seriously handicap some of these banks.” - Greg Larkin, CEO Punks and Pinstripes.

The race for AI talent on Wall Street is a key battleground in the financial industry's quest for innovation and competitiveness. As AI continues to disrupt traditional workflows, banks must adapt by attracting and retaining top AI talent. While Amazon currently leads in talent acquisition, the situation remains fluid, and the emergence of an AI-enhanced challenger investment bank from one of the tech giants is not inconceivable. As the industry evolves, it is essential for financial institutions to stay attuned to the shifting landscape of AI talent and position themselves for success in this new era of finance.

This analysis was a collaborative effort between Lead Genius and Punks & Pinstripes, a private executive network.

If you're interested in creating custom data sets like the ones we used to identify who is winning the war on AI talent in Wall Street, we can help. We're experts in creating custom data sets tailored to your company’s unique needs. Whether you want to identify new markets or track industry trends, our team of data experts work with you to develop custom data sets to fuel your sales and marketing efforts. To learn more about how LeadGenius can help your business, visit us at www.leadgenius.com.