Starling Bank has rolled out an AI-driven assistant for personal current account holders, marking a reported first for UK banks in deploying an agentic AI tool to support everyday financial tasks.
Accessible within Starling’s mobile app, the new ‘Starling Assistant’ enables users to perform banking actions via voice and natural language, such as creating savings plans and organising bill payments.
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The technology draws on eight years of the bank’s AI research and development and builds upon features released last year, including Spending Intelligence for analysing outgoings and Scam Intelligence for detecting fraud in online marketplaces.
Users can make requests such as setting financial goals for upcoming expenses, establishing budget categories with automated transfers, or querying recurring payments and transaction histories.
Starling Group CEO Raman Bhatia said: “Generative AI has transformative potential for financial services and Starling is showing what’s possible, whether it’s protecting people from scams or helping them better understand their spending.
“Agentic AI is the next step in banking and I’m thrilled that Starling’s customers will be the first to benefit from this cutting-edge technology.”
Support is extended to customers with accessibility needs, offering guidance on using sign language services or activating gambling restrictions.
Practical queries, such as card replacement or digital payment setup, are also handled by the assistant.
The tool is built on Google Gemini and operates using Starling’s private Google Cloud infrastructure.
Participation in the service is optional and requires customer consent; data processed by the assistant is retained within the bank’s cloud environment and is not used to train external models.
Google Cloud UK and Ireland FSI director Graham Drury commented: “AI is fundamentally changing how people interact with their finances. We are moving away from clicking through menus and navigating complex apps, toward simply having a conversation about your money.
“Built with Google Gemini, this new wave of agentic AI doesn’t just answer questions; it understands everyday language and does the heavy lifting of budgeting and organising bills for the user. It’s a powerful example of using AI to make money management more intuitive, accessible, and secure for everyone.”
Personal current account users will be the first to access Starling Assistant, with availability for business and joint accounts planned in due course.
Last month, Starling Bank made headlines to extend its reach in the US by offering its Engine software platform to American banks, according to Financial Times (FT), which referenced statements from the CEO of Engine by Starling.
