UBS banks on Domino Data Lab
Enterprise technology vendors sell to customers.
That makes vendors vendors and it makes customers customers, usually.
Every now and again, that part of the fabric in the space-time continuum gets a little more textured.
Sometimes customers are partners.
DXC Technology were one of the first to try this on, the mission critical systems data architecture company sold its technology to Manchester United and ended up with a logo deal that saw its name emblazoned on the players’ shirts… but to the technology community, it seemed unlikely that Manchester United were contributing too much back to DXC’s insurance software codebase.
Domino Data Lab has made what at first sounds like a similar play (Ed: enough football puns already) with UBS, the wealth management and Swiss banking organisation.
So is the partnership more substantial?
It appears like it could be, Domino will work with UBS on enterprise artificial intelligence (AI) and its model development and, in return, the partnership is strengthened with an equity investment led by UBS and a UBS representative will join the Domino Data Lab Board as an observer.
Auditable foundation for AI
According to Domino, the broadened partnership builds on over five years of collaboration with RiskLab, UBS’s platform for AI model development and validation. The platform was built within the UBS environment, based on Domino’s product, providing a secure, collaborative and auditable foundation for AI model development, supporting UBS’s risk-based approach.
The approach will now be rolled out across the bank to streamline AI model development and deployment, driving efficiency and innovation across UBS, and ensuring that AI-driven solutions are readily available to meet business needs.
“At UBS, we’re making bold choices to ensure we’re an AI-enabled institution – leveraging cutting-edge technologies to deliver smarter, faster, and above all, more responsible innovation that benefits our clients, people, and shareholders,” said Stephan Hug, head of group functions technology, UBS. “Our growing partnership with Domino Data Lab reinforces this commitment, establishing scalable AI and robust model governance as important pillars of our advanced digital strategy.”
Domino’s platform now serves as the foundation for broader AI development initiatives. By enabling collaboration, traceability and governance, Domino says it equips UBS teams to build and deploy advanced models faster and with greater confidence.
“There is a tremendous opportunity for AI to help safeguard financial markets and improve customer experiences,” said Nick Elprin, co-founder and CEO of Domino Data Lab. “We’re proud to support UBS as they scale AI across their firm – with speed and safety simultaneously.”
With AI adoption accelerating the pace of innovation across financial services, the expanded UBS-Domino collaboration is supporting UBS’s leadership in this industry-wide shift.
Tangible connection
There’s still a bit of marketing spin here, but this is clearly a more tangible working connection than logos and sponsored shirts.
That’s a two-all draw with points for both firms then, let’s hope it never goes to penalties.
