Investment management giant Vanguard has struck a partnership with the University of Toronto’s department of computer science (CS) that aims to advance artificial intelligence (AI) research and innovation for investors and the financial services industry.
“[We] are happy to grow our presence and team in Toronto, a city that is rapidly becoming a global hub for AI innovation and top technology talent.”
Kathy Bock
Head of Vanguard Investments Canada
The partnership will see the university’s CS department establish several labs of professors, post-doctoral fellows, and students that will collaborate with Vanguard’s Toronto-based AI research team. The academics and researchers will collectively “develop broad AI solutions and insights to address business challenges and drive innovation within the financial services industry,” Vanguard said in a statement.
The initial research will focus on principles for the ethical and transparent use of AI, more natural interaction with humans, decision-making, and improvements to performance and reliability.
To deliver on this, the parties will co-create papers and jointly host meetings, seminars, conferences, and recruitment initiatives for research projects.
A spokesperson told BetaKit that Vanguard will also add around 70 roles to its AI research team in Toronto, for a total headcount of 90, and provide internship opportunities for University of Toronto students as part of the partnership.
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“Over the past fourteen years, we have proudly served Canadian investors and we are happy to grow our presence and team in Toronto, a city that is rapidly becoming a global hub for AI innovation and top technology talent,” Kathy Bock, managing director and head of Vanguard Investments Canada, said in a statement.
Vanguard is one of the world’s largest investment management companies. The firm claims it manages $10 trillion USD ($13.7 trillion CAD) in global assets across its offering of 441 funds, including over $3.3 trillion USD ($4.5 trillion CAD) in global exchange-traded fund (ETF) assets, as of last month. The investment manager has offices in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia.
Feature image courtesy University of Toronto. Photo by David Lee.