Lloyds Taps AWS Vet Rohit Dhawan to Lead AI Efforts

British banking giant Lloyds has picked an Amazon Web Services veteran as its AI head.

Rohit Dhawan has been named Lloyds’ director of artificial intelligence (AI), overseeing the firm’s AI Center of Excellence and driving adoption of AI-powered products and services for the lender, per a Monday (Aug. 5) news release.

“Rohit’s appointment is a significant boost for the strategic development of AI technology and capabilities within Lloyds Banking Group, with his wealth of experience delivering technology and change, at pace and scale,” Ranil Boteju, the bank’s chief data and analytics officer, said in the release.

“Rohit will work across the business to further integrate AI outcomes into business priorities, helping us to scale AI in a consistent way and deliver against our strategy.”

In his time with Amazon Web Services, Dhawan served as the head of data and AI strategy for the Asia-Pacific region, leading projects like the integration of AI into customer and operational processes and establishing a multi-disciplinary data and AI function, the release said.

According to Lloyds, his hiring is part of the bank’s larger strategy — announced in 2022 — to accelerate its use of digital technologies.

The news comes as AI is poised to both challenge and transform the banking sector, according to a recent report by McKinsey.

“The banking industry’s track record with technology investments has been mixed, according to the firm,” PYMNTS wrote last month. “McKinsey’s research indicated that only 30% of digital transformation initiatives have succeeded. This statistic underscores banks’ difficulty demonstrating a return on investment for their tech spending, particularly in AI.”

A number of factors exacerbate these challenges, McKinsey said: banks need to show return on past tech investments, stand out from rivals and succeed in ongoing transformation efforts.

McKinsey’s data showed that higher revenue in banking “remains very strongly correlated with more manual work,” suggesting that technology still must deliver the expected automation benefits. The firm also stressed that capturing value from AI requires actions beyond the technology domain. McKinsey surveys revealed that 60% of executives pointed to skill gaps as an impeding digital transformation, while 70% faced resistance to change.

“The integration of AI in banking also raises questions about the future role of human bankers,” PYMNTS added. “While AI can streamline processes and provide quick data analysis, human judgment remains crucial, especially in complex financial decisions.”

Meanwhile, a report by Citigroup in June warned that the banking industry faces the most significant impact from AI deployment, with 54% of jobs at risk of AI-driven job displacement, while an additional 12% of banking roles could be enhanced by AI integration.