Visa is amplifying its dedication to artificial intelligence (AI) within the commerce and settlement sectors by launching a $100 million fund focused on investments in generative AI enterprises.
This financial commitment is designed to bolster firms that are at the forefront of crafting generative AI solutions, especially those targeting commerce and payment domains. The entire endeavor will be overseen by Visa Ventures, the company’s international corporate investment division.
Jack Forestell, Visa’s chief product and strategy officer, highlights the immense potential generative AI holds in the finance arena. He elaborates:
“Although generative AI has predominantly been applied to tasks like content creation, its influence will soon extend beyond, dramatically altering commerce in ways we must be prepared for.”
Visa’s foray into generative AI is a continuation of its longstanding engagement with AI technology. The company boasts a pioneering role in incorporating AI into payments, tracing back to 1993 when it introduced AI-driven tools for risk mitigation and fraud detection. Visa reflects on its leadership, stating:
“Being at the forefront of AI in payments since 1993, this new initiative is simply an expansion of Visa’s trailblazing use of AI, aimed at spurring innovation in payments, delivering value to partners, and catalyzing global commerce.”
Moreover, Visa has consistently exhibited a keen interest in the confluence of cryptocurrency and payments. In April 2021, they unveiled a crypto initiative aimed at fostering increased adoption of public blockchain systems and stablecoin transactions. Furthermore, Visa’s real-time fraud detection tool, Visa Advanced Authorisation, is credited with averting a staggering $27 billion in potential fraudulent activities.
