When OCBC unveiled its Next Frontier strategy in February, Group CEO Tan Teck Long positioned artificial intelligence, digital and data (ADD) at the centre of the bank's next phase of growth. Rather than treating AI as a technology initiative, he described it as one element within an effort to redesign customer-centric processes, strengthen the use of enterprise data and build new digital capabilities across the OCBC Group.

Four months later, the bank has introduced the first major initiative developed under that strategy. Avatar banking by OCBC WoW, an AI-enabled wealth platform built around two digital avatars, Wendy and Wayne, is the first customer-facing application of that strategy.

OCBC chose wealth management as the first business in which to apply its ADD strategy, reflecting the Group's assessment that the business offers the strongest opportunity to combine AI, digital capabilities and data in a customer-facing environment.

AI avatars Wendy and Wayne engage with customers 24/7 via voice or text in English, with additional languages to be introduced over time

Turning ADD from strategy into execution

Central to OCBC's approach is Tan's insistence that AI should not be viewed as the strategy itself. He repeatedly described AI as a tool that supports an operating model combining digital capabilities, enterprise data and redesigned customer-centric processes. "We do not put AI in the centre because we feel that AI is just a tool," he said, explaining that the bank first redesigns the process before deciding where AI is "fit for purpose".

That philosophy also shaped the bank's technology investment. Tan declined to separate AI expenditure from technology investment, arguing that AI is embedded within digital infrastructure, enterprise data and process redesign rather than managed as a standalone programme. Instead, he disclosed that the Group expects to invest more than SGD 1 billion (about $740 million) annually in technology over the next few years. He said this was higher than previous spending.

Tan drew the same distinction when discussing returns on investment. He explained that individual AI initiatives could produce measurable productivity gains but cautioned against attributing outcomes solely to AI when digitalisation and process redesign are implemented together. Referring to OCBC WoW, he characterised the initiative as one designed primarily to generate new business rather than reduce operating costs, differentiating it from automation projects focused mainly on efficiency.

Wealth becomes the first proving ground

The decision reflects changes already underway to integrate the Group's banking, private banking and insurance businesses around a common wealth proposition spanning OCBC, Bank of Singapore and Great Eastern.

Tan said this is overseen through a Wealth Management Committee, which he chairs together with the heads of the three businesses. The committee reviews common priorities across the Group, including technology investment, product development and performance objectives.

That organisational alignment supports an equally ambitious commercial target. Sunny Quek, Head of Global Consumer Financial Services, reiterated the bank's objective of doubling consumer banking wealth income by 2029, bringing the target forward by one year. He said initiatives such as OCBC WoW are intended to deepen customer engagement, increase the Group's share of wallet.

The objective also extends to OCBC's investment in frontline advisory capabilities. Tan said the bank plans to recruit 600 additional relationship managers over the next three years. He argued that AI should enable advisers to spend less time on routine tasks and more time supporting customers on complex financial decisions as demand for wealth advisory continues to grow.

OCBC has already begun applying the approach elsewhere. Its generative AI coaching programme doubled weekly client appointments and increased adviser revenue by 50% within three months, while Bank of Singapore's AI-powered Source-of-Wealth tool reduced report preparation time from 10 days to about one hour.

Building a new customer interaction model

The first application of OCBC's ADD strategy introduces a new interaction channel alongside digital banking, branches and relationship managers. Through OCBC WoW, the bank is introducing conversational AI into wealth management, combining customers' portfolio information with real-time market data, OCBC research and investment insights through voice or text. Tan described the platform as changing the "face of banking", saying it gives customers continuous access to portfolio information, market developments and investment ideas between traditional advisory conversations. The initial release will be in English, with Mandarin, Bahasa Melayu and Bahasa Indonesia to be introduced progressively.

Tan rejected the suggestion that the technology was intended to replace advisers. Customers, he said, would continue to choose different channels depending on the complexity of their needs. The avatars are designed to help customers understand market developments, explore investment ideas and prepare for discussions with their advisers, while relationship managers remain responsible for judgement and the more complex decisions that require human engagement.

He also emphasised that the platform operates within the bank's own governance framework. Responses are generated using OCBC's proprietary research, house views and customer portfolio information rather than unrestricted external content. While some simpler banking interactions may eventually be completed through the platform, more complex transactions and advisory decisions will continue to be subject to the bank's existing controls and approval processes. He added that the underlying AI-native architecture allows the platform to evolve as models improve without changing the overall operating framework.

Quek said the rollout will be deliberately phased. The initial beta will involve about 50 invited customers over a six-month period, primarily OCBC Premier Private Client customers in Singapore, alongside selected employees. Subsequent releases will incorporate customer feedback before wider deployment. He added that expansion beyond Singapore will depend not only on language capabilities but also on product readiness, regulatory requirements and the maturity of individual markets, reflecting the bank's intention to scale the platform progressively rather than simultaneously across the region.

What comes next

The first phase demonstrates that OCBC is attempting to execute Next Frontier as an enterprise-wide operating model rather than a collection of AI initiatives. The launch of OCBC WoW marks the first visible application of that approach, but management's emphasis is on embedding AI, digital capabilities and data across businesses rather than deploying individual AI tools.

The next phase will depend less on the technology than on execution. As the platform expands beyond its initial beta, attention will shift to customer adoption, adviser utilisation, product expansion and the bank's ability to integrate the platform across different businesses and markets while maintaining consistent customer experiences and governance standards. The gradual rollout beyond Singapore also reflects the practical realities of adapting products, regulatory requirements and customer propositions across multiple jurisdictions.

For now, OCBC has moved beyond outlining its Next Frontier strategy to demonstrating its first implementation. Whether the model succeeds will depend on customer adoption, commercial outcomes and OCBC's ability to extend it consistently across the Group as the platform evolves.