Artificial intelligence (AI) is poised to change the face of fintech, promising groundbreaking enhancements to marketing and decisioning models and unmatched efficiency in content generation.  But regulators are concerned that the adoption of AI tools may “perpetuate unlawful bias, automate unlawful discrimination, and produce other harmful outcomes.”

In an April 27, 2023 joint statement (Joint Statement), the heads of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) made clear their intent to fix their attention on policing the use of AI to prevent unlawful discrimination against protected groups.  While the Joint Statement acknowledged the potential benefits of “responsible innovation,” its focus was the agencies’ shared concern about the potential of AI and other automated systems to perpetuate unlawful bias and discrimination. With AI under a regulatory microscope, how can financial technology developers and users continue to explore and take advantage of the benefits of AI without finding themselves facing a fairness-based enforcement action?