On 12 October 2020, the Bank of England published the opening remarks given by Dave Ramsden (Deputy Governor for Markets and Banking) at the launch of the Artificial Intelligence Public Private Forum.

Key points in the opening remarks include:

• The world is a very different place today from the one we started with this year. While the COVID-19 pandemic has had, and will continue to have, a profound impact on the economy, and on the households and businesses that drive it, it has also increased and focussed interest in the potential uses of artificial intelligence (AI) in tackling some of the many immediate problems and challenges precipitated by the pandemic.
• In a recent survey of the banks and insurers regulated by the PRA, around 45% of those firms that participated reported that the pandemic has led to an increase in the importance of AI and data science applications for their future operations, with around 55% reporting no change, and none noting a decrease.
• The existing regulatory landscape is somewhat fragmented when it comes to AI, with different pieces of regulation applying to different aspects of the AI pipeline, from data through model risk to governance. Policy must strike a balance between high-level principles and a more rules-based approach. Policy initiatives need to be future proofed in a fast-changing field.
• In order to further its objective of promoting the safe adoption of AI in financial services, the Bank of England, along with the FCA, is launching the Artificial Intelligence Public-Private Forum. The purpose of the Forum is to further dialogue between the public and private sectors in order to better understand the use and impact of AI in financial services.
• The Forum, which is expected to run for one year, will consist of a series of quarterly meetings and workshops structured around each of three topic areas: Data, Model Risk Management, and Governance.