What is Agentic AI?
Agentic AI refers to artificial intelligence systems that can act autonomously to achieve defined goals, making decisions and taking actions without requiring step-by-step human guidance. These systems combine planning, reasoning and tool use to complete complex workflows. In financial services, agentic AI might autonomously monitor adviser calls for compliance risks, generate required documentation and flag issues for human review, operating within strict governance frameworks to ensure appropriate oversight and control.
Agentic AI in financial services
Agentic AI raises specific questions for regulated firms: who is accountable for an autonomous decision, how its reasoning is evidenced, and how it is monitored once live. Existing obligations such as Consumer Duty and the Senior Managers and Certification Regime still apply, so firms typically introduce agentic AI in controlled steps, with testing before deployment and oversight after it.