ANZ has announced a partnership with Microsoft to establish an artificial intelligence Immersion Centre at its Melbourne headquarters.
The facility, located at 833 Collins Street, is the first of its kind in the banking sector in Australia and New Zealand, the bank said.
The bank aims to send 3000 leaders through the centre over the next 12 months to accelerate AI adoption across the organisation.
The AI Immersion Centre will provide hands-on learning experiences to help ANZ leaders understand the potential of generative AI and how to use it safely.
To support the AI initiative, ANZ has purchased 3000 Copilot for Microsoft 365 licences.
"We are actively embracing generative AI across all lines of our business to improve how we serve and protect our customers, process work and meet regulatory standards," Gerard Florian, ANZ group executive of technology said.
ANZ's initiative comes as Microsoft and LinkedIn's 2024 Work Trend Index reveals that Australia and New Zealand are among the strongest adopters of generative AI in the workplace.
The report shows that 84 per cent of employees in these countries use AI technology at work, surpassing the global average of 75 per cent.
There is also "shadow AI" happening, the report suggests.
Some 78 per cent of AI users in Australia and 81 per cent in New Zealand are bringing their own AI tools to work, often without formal training or introduction from IT departments.
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