Accelerating the collection and analysis of investment information with generative AI

A fintech startup and IBM Business Partner headquartered in Sweden, Edger Finance (link resides outside of ibm.com) aims to be the go-to solution that investors can use to navigate the stock market and make better investment decisions.

In 2023, Edger joined the IBM^® Fintechx (link resides outside of ibm.com) program and began collaborating with IBM Client Engineering and the IBM Innovation Studio. The goal for the engagement was to strengthen the firm’s processes and platform by piloting generative AI (gen AI). The collaboration resulted in the creation of three AI-assisted processes that are offered in Swedish and English and were explored during a four-week minimum viable product (MVP) pilot:

• The first accelerates and simplifies the creation of a CEO summary from corporations’ quarterly reports.
• The second automates the extraction of data points that are within each report.
• The third allows investors to interact with the data in the report through a question-answer chat flow.

Each assistant relies on IBM watsonx.ai™, an enterprise-grade AI studio designed for security-rich, collaborative data management and process automation.  The third assistant also utilizes IBM watsonx™ Assistant, a product that helps build better virtual agents to drive enterprise productivity. “This technology stack gives us a competitive edge, making it possible for the platform to categorize and analyze quarterly reports automatically,” adds Petter Hattenbach, Founder and CEO of Edger.

The tests conducted during the pilot demonstrated clear results and great potential for generative AI at Edger:

• 90% improvement in the turnaround time for quarterly report data extracts. Whereas previously the process could take up to a week, the pilot demonstrated that it could be accomplished in just four hours.
• Approximately 96% improvement in the time it takes to summarize the main points of a 30+ page report. Whereas previously it could take an analyst up to half an hour to complete this task, the pilot demonstrated that it could be accomplished in a matter of seconds.

The pilot also pointed toward several potential benefits for retail investors, such as greater efficiency in collecting and reviewing investment data as well as improved relevance and personalization of information provided to each investor utilizing the platform. By opening up possibilities for investors to interact with each report, Edger has made it easier for them to find, analyze and take action on information that is the most relevant to them and their investment strategy. The pilot also proves that Edger’s solution could be of value for corporations that want to leverage the data as well, something that was acknowledged by the program partner Handelsbanken (link resides outside of ibm.com) who presented Edger with the “Best Enterprise Product” award.  

“Our partnership with IBM in the realm of generative AI has been nothing short of transformative. Through our combined efforts, we efficiently brought an MVP to market, allowing for immediate real-world applications and pushing the boundaries of what generative AI can achieve, both in the current landscape and in future endeavors,” concludes Hattenbach.