Embedding AI capability
At NatWest Group, we believe that artificial intelligence (AI) is not just a technology, it’s a capability that are we cultivating across the entire business.
As AI becomes increasingly embedded in how we serve customers, manage risk, and operate at scale, we understand that our success depends not only on the sophistication of our models, but on the confidence and the AI fluency of our colleagues.
That’s why we want to empower every colleague, regardless of role or technical background, to engage with AI meaningfully and responsibly, using it to develop future-fit banking to succeed with customers.
As a result of our efforts towards this ambition, almost 63,000 colleagues have now completed guided AI learning pathways, and elective completions have surged to nearly 112,000 this year alone – a 144% increase over 2024. Importantly, these aren’t just numbers, they represent a cultural shift.
Tools that empower
Education is only part of the equation. We’ve also focused on making AI tools accessible, intuitive, and embedded in the flow of work. Our internal AI digital enabler, which helps colleagues summarise documents, problem-solve, draft content and surface insights in seconds, is now used by over 10,000 colleagues. One colleague described it as ‘like having a supercharged teammate who never sleeps’ and seventy percent of users report time savings, and half say it improves the quality of their work.
We’ve also rolled out Microsoft 365 Copilot to more than 3,500 colleagues. It’s already the most-used app in the suite, with 69% of users reporting productivity gains and 52% noting improvements in their quality of work. One executive assistant shared how Copilot helped them prepare board briefing packs in half the usual time, allowing for more strategic input and fewer late nights.
For our developers, we’ve introduced GitLab Duo, which supports code generation, test case creation, and workflow automation. Following mandatory training on AI Ethics and Prompt Engineering, over 4,700 engineers now use it regularly, and almost 90% report frequent use of its code generation features. In one case, a Java upgrade that previously took weeks was completed eight times faster with AI support.
