Finance firms set to pour more into AI amid ‘data divide’ fears

July 30, 2026 - 03:18

A new survey reveals that most asset management firms are gearing up to significantly increase their investments in artificial intelligence over the next year. The push comes as the industry grapples with what experts are calling a growing "data divide" between early adopters and those lagging behind.

According to the report, over 60% of asset managers plan to raise their AI budgets in 2025, with some expecting to double their spending. The focus is shifting from experimental projects to core operations, including portfolio optimization, risk analysis, and client reporting. However, the rapid adoption is also reshaping workforce dynamics. Firms are scrambling to hire data scientists and AI specialists while reducing roles in traditional data processing and manual analysis.

The "data divide" refers to the gap between firms that can effectively harness vast amounts of structured and unstructured data and those that cannot. Smaller asset managers, in particular, fear being left behind as larger competitors deploy AI to gain faster insights and lower costs. One executive noted that without significant investment, smaller firms risk becoming "data poor" in an increasingly automated market. The trend underscores a broader transformation where success may depend less on human intuition and more on machine-driven pattern recognition.