The grant will be used by the consortium to accelerate the development and adoption of trustworthy AI solutions within the financial services sector. For Stratiphy, the additional funding will be used to enhance its personal investment management solution, by incorporating cutting-edge AI technology within it. As the lead applicant for the consortium, the company will enhance its focus in this area by expanding its team of AI specialists. This expansion will position the company to capitalise on new opportunities presented by the technology.

The grant was provided by Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The non-departmental public body plans to invest up-to £21 million in innovation projects over the next decade. The consortium was chosen for its dedication to promoting the adoption of trustworthy AI technologies within financial analytics. This commitment also includes efforts to eliminate bottlenecks in development and deployment, which aligns closely with the core mission of Innovate UK and UKRI.

The consortium includes a diverse range of academic and commercial partners, including:

• University of Bristol: providing expertise in AI and financial modelling
• University of Birmingham: providing expertise in trustworthy AI applications
• Chenavari Investment Managers: specialists in structured credit
• Smart Pension: innovative workplace pensions technology
• Aventur Wealth: technology driven wealth management
• Stratiphy: personalised portfolio management

By harnessing the power of both academic and commercial partners, the consortium aims to develop truly novel solutions for the market, which address important commercial challenges currently affecting the investment management space. Notably, the consortium boasts the considerable knowledge of Dr John Cartlidge at the University of Bristol, who specialises in Financial Informatics and Data Science and Prof. Karen Elliott at the University of Birmingham who has expertise in trustworthy applications of AI.

Speaking on the announcement, Daniel Gold, CEO and Founder of Stratiphy, commented: “We are thrilled to lead this consortium to deliver innovative AI technologies that offer high-value financial solutions. We have been joined by companies that are not only business leaders in their respective fields of wealth planning, pensions and structured credit, but also want to be at the cutting edge of innovation. By combining this commercial acumen with the deep expertise of our academic partners we aim to achieve important breakthroughs.”

This news comes on the heels of Stratiphy’s FCA authorisation announcement, which occurred earlier this month. The authorisation allows the company to offer retail investors automated investment strategies, which are customised to their individual needs and goals. This advancement contrasts sharply with the traditional 'one-size-fits-all' approach of model portfolio solutions, granting retail investors access to sophisticated investment algorithms once exclusive to major hedge funds and banks.