Built by Pittsburgh: BNY’s AI-Rooted Growth
By Jonah Shapiro
In the heart of downtown Pittsburgh, a technological revolution is underway. Young data scientists – many fresh from Carnegie Mellon University’s renowned AI programs and other local universities – collaborate in an AI Hub just blocks from where industrialist Andrew Mellon once ran his bank. BNY, an institution older than the U.S. Constitution, is leveraging cutting-edge artificial intelligence to transform how a global bank operates.
Legacy of Finance and Early Innovation
BNY’s dual heritage traces back over two centuries – founded in 1784 by Alexander Hamilton, making it the oldest U.S. banking company. Meanwhile, in Pittsburgh, financier Andrew Mellon established Mellon Bank in 1869, fueling industrial growth (he famously helped finance the steel industry). These two storied institutions merged in 2007, combining Wall Street pedigree with Pittsburgh’s industrial banking legacy. Even at the merger, executives stressed Pittsburgh’s importance (Reuters). “Pittsburgh will remain an important city for us,” then-CEO Bob Kelly promised, committing to add thousands of jobs in the city. This fortuitous pledge acknowledged what history had already shown – Pittsburgh was integral to the bank’s identity and would be vital in the combined company’s future.
That future arrived faster than anyone anticipated. By the late 2010s, the financial industry faced digital disruption and rising cyber risks, prompting BNY to lean into innovation. The bank had a tradition of technology investment (opening innovation centers in tech hubs from Palo Alto to Pune), but around 2020 it began a concerted push to infuse artificial intelligence (AI) across its operations (PYNMTS). This was both a nod to its Hamilton-era spirit of innovation and a strategic imperative to remain competitive in modern finance. The convergence of BNY’s historic strengths with new AI capabilities set the stage for a dramatic transformation of how the bank detects fraud, manages assets, serves clients, complies with regulations, and drives efficiency.
Becoming an AI-First Financial Institution
In a few short years, the bank has rapidly accelerated its AI journey. In 2024, BNY deployed an NVIDIA-powered AI supercomputer – the first major bank to do so – to turbocharge its processing capacity for AI initiatives. Today the company boasts over 60 AI-enabled solutions in production and even built its own enterprise AI platform, dubbed “Eliza.” Named after Eliza Hamilton (wife of Alexander Hamilton and a noted philanthropist), the Eliza platform provides a central marketplace of AI tools, approved datasets, and a community forum for employees to develop and share AI solutions. It is a foundational layer designed to enhance client service, streamline operations, and foster a culture of innovation across the bank (BNY). As BNY puts it, “by integrating AI into our core operations, empowering our people, and innovating for our clients, we are not just adapting to the future – we are actively shaping it.”
Underpinning this AI strategy is a significant focus on talent and training. BNY launched extensive internal programs to upskill its workforce in AI, making sure the culture keeps pace with the technology. Within months of rolling out an AI learning curriculum, employees completed over 26,000 hours of AI training, and over 90% of the workforce (50,000+ employees) had been onboarded onto the Eliza platform (BNY). From executives to analysts, staff are encouraged to experiment with AI solutions through hackathons and “promptathons.” In a recent internal hackathon, more than 1,100 employees explored 120+ AI ideas for wealth and investment services in just two weeks (BNY). The message is clear: at BNY, AI is everyone’s business.
Pittsburgh: The AI Backbone of BNY Mellon’s Transformation
BNY’s campus in downtown Pittsburgh. The city’s deep talent pool and innovation culture have made it the cornerstone of the bank’s AI journey.
BNY’s AI renaissance has a distinctly Pittsburgh flavor. While the company is officially headquartered in New York, it is Pittsburgh – the home of the Mellon legacy – that has become a living laboratory for its AI innovation. The bank’s downtown Pittsburgh campus houses one of BNY’s largest technology footprints, including its core AI Hub team (Index PGH). This concentration of AI talent in Western Pennsylvania is no accident; it’s the result of conscious strategy to tap into the region’s unique advantages.
One major asset is Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), often ranked as the nation’s #1 computer science and artificial intelligence school. For nearly a decade, BNY has forged a close partnership with CMU’s Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence & Innovation (MSAII) program to pipeline talent and ideas into the company. The results have been remarkable: since 2022, about 25% of all MSAII graduates now begin their careers at BNY’s AI Hub (Index PGH).
The cultural and lifestyle advantages of Pittsburgh help BNY attract and retain this talent. Many young technologists find the city an appealing place to live and work, combining affordability with vibrant city amenities.
Will Flanagan, a data scientist in BNY’s AI risk team and a recent CMU alum, notes that having so many colleagues from the same rigorous program creates a strong community: “It’s a super comfortable environment to work in since we all come from a somewhat standardized background and can heavily depend on one another to do solid work,” Flanagan says. Recent hires like Shruti Nair, a senior data scientist, have embraced downtown Pittsburgh life – she describes how every weekend feels lively, with theaters, restaurants, and even stadium fireworks visible from her window, all within walking distance. This vibrant yet approachable city environment is a selling point over pricier financial hubs. As Flanagan puts it, “Downtown is where everything is for me… Work is a short walk away, the theaters are a block away, and restaurants galore can be found all over downtown.” Such quality of life considerations mean BNY’s Pittsburgh hires are more likely to stay and grow their careers with the company, reducing brain drain. Indeed, Pittsburgh’s cost-effective innovation environment – from lower living costs to cheaper office space – allows BNY to invest in long-term R&D that might be cost-prohibitive on Wall Street. (Commercial real estate in Pittsburgh can be less than half the cost of Silicon Valley, and tech salaries stretch further, enabling what one local CEO calls “serious AI” work without the hype.)
Beyond talent pipelines and cost advantages, BNY has leaned into Pittsburgh’s innovation ecosystem. The city’s transformation from Rust Belt to Nvidia’s First AI Tech Community has created a thriving community of AI startups, research labs, and tech investors. BNY actively participates in this community. It operates a 32,000 sq. ft. Innovation Center on the 12th floor of its Pittsburgh complex – one of nine such centers globally – designed as a modern collaborative space with coworking zones, an art gallery, and even treadmill desks to spark creativity (Biz Journals). The bank often opens this space for local hackathons and tech meetups, including events like UpPrize (a social innovation challenge connecting entrepreneurs with nonprofits) to support the broader community (Biz Journals). By embedding itself in Pittsburgh’s tech scene, BNY gains early access to emerging ideas and cements its reputation as a leader in the region’s AI renaissance.
Additionally, CEO Robin Vince’s leadership has been pivotal to BNY’s profound and successful transformation—not just in technology, but in identity. According to Vince, “A bank isn't what we are,” but rather “A bank is something that we have. A bank is something that we use to provide services to our clients.” That redefinition is playing out in Pittsburgh, as BNY has quietly turned its local operations into a proving ground for digital transformation—deploying machine learning, automation, and intelligent software agents to streamline everything from client services to internal operations. Rather than chasing the hype, Vince is betting on the strength of applied AI—shaped by Pittsburgh talent and tested in real workflows—to reshape how a 241-year-old financial institution operates in the 21st century.
AI Horizons Pittsburgh Summit
One shining example of BNY’s thought leadership was the inaugural AI Horizons Pittsburgh Summit in late 2024. BNY was a lead sponsor of this high-profile conference – hosted at Bakery Square, the city’s burgeoning tech campus – which drew over 650 global experts, from the Pennsylvania Governor to OpenAI board members (SPC). At the summit, Chris Martin of BNY’s AI Hub took the stage and expressed why the bank helped organize the event in its hometown. The company was “proud to be doing this here in Pittsburgh”, Martin said, adding that “one of the reasons why we’re here at this event is to try to help tell [Pittsburgh’s] story.” His words underscore how BNY sees itself as an ambassador for Pittsburgh’s emergence as a world-class AI hub. The bank isn’t merely building cool tech in isolation; it’s showcasing Pittsburgh’s capability to drive the future of finance. Michael Keslar, Divisional CIO and President of BNY Pennsylvania, echoed this sentiment alongside public officials at the summit. “The #AI ecosystem in Pittsburgh is thriving,” Keslar noted, and “we stand by our continued investment and contribution in making #PGH a recognized tech hub for AI talent and innovation with real global impact.” In other words, BNY views its success and Pittsburgh’s success as intertwined.
The symbiosis between BNY and Pittsburgh has yielded tangible benefits for the bank’s global operations. Many of the AI applications BNY already has in production were built by teams in Pittsburgh, then rolled out to serve the company’s clients across continents (Technical.ly). From Pittsburgh, BNY’s AI solutions are influencing financial workflows worldwide, whether it’s a trade anomaly detector used in London or a fraud model protecting transactions in New York. Pennsylvania’s Governor Josh Shapiro perhaps put it best, saying“the future… is going to run right through Pittsburgh.” For BNY, that statement is more than political optimism – it’s an everyday reality as their Pittsburgh-based AI talent propels innovations that keep a 50-country enterprise on the cutting edge.
From Steel City to Wall Street: Looking Ahead
BNY’s AI transformation – anchored in Pittsburgh’s talent and ethos – illustrates a powerful template for legacy companies adapting to the digital age. In just a few years, the bank has gone from experimenting with a handful of AI use cases to infusing AI into its core products and services. And it insists this is only the beginning. “There are some people who still think it’s a lot of hype. We’re not in that camp,” says Michael Keslar, when asked about AI’s buzz in finance. Indeed, BNY’s leaders see AI as fundamental to banking as balance sheets and ledgers. The company’s multiyear partnership with OpenAI, announced in 2025, underscores a forward-looking mindset: gaining access to the latest generative AI research to continually upgrade Eliza and other internal tools. In return, OpenAI benefits from insights into real-world banking challenges to fine-tune its models– a win-win that could accelerate new AI solutions for fraud, forecasting, and beyond (Finextra).
As BNY moves ahead, we can expect AI to further blur the lines between human and machine capabilities at the bank. Executives envision a future where routine client inquiries are handled start-to-finish by virtual assistants, where compliance reviews are largely automated by AI watchdogs, and where human experts work side-by-side with algorithms to deliver better outcomes. Importantly, any such advances will be guided by the bank’s principles of responsible AI use, ensuring transparency and trust remain paramount in an industry built on fiduciary responsibility. BNY’s approach demonstrates that embracing AI is not about replacing people, but about elevating them – freeing staff to focus on creative problem-solving while machines handle the grunt work (Technical.ly). “It’s not really about the technology and replacing humans,” as one BNY technologist noted. “It’s about how we use technology to augment what we do so that we are able to better deliver for our clients.”
Finally, BNY’s partnership with Pittsburgh offers a glimpse into how location can drive innovation in the 21st century. By anchoring its AI efforts in a city that’s big enough to matter but small enough to maneuver, the bank tapped an ideal mix of brains and practicality. Pittsburgh’s culture of research excellence with humility – what Andrew Moore of Lovelace AI admiringly called “the world’s serious AI city” – aligns well with a bank that must carefully manage risk while pushing technological boundaries. The relatively lower costs and collaborative spirit of Pittsburgh enabled BNY to build scalable AI solutions that have global impact without the Silicon Valley flashiness. In turn, BNY’s success reinforces Pittsburgh’s status as a rising tech powerhouse, creating a virtuous cycle of investment and innovation.
In conclusion, BNY’s evolution into an AI-first financial institution shows how even the oldest of banks can reinvent itself with the right vision, talent, and partnerships. It requires marrying centuries-old trust with cutting-edge tech – and in BNY’s case, marrying Wall Street with the Steel City. The case of BNY proves that artificial intelligence, when implemented thoughtfully, can breathe new life into legacy organizations. It also proves that location matters: by rooting its AI strategy in Pittsburgh’s fertile ground, BNY ensured that its transformation was not only technologically sound but also culturally grounded. As we look to the future of finance, one thing is clear: the innovations shaping the industry may be deployed on global trading floors, but many will be born in places like Pittsburgh – where a storied bank and a tech-savvy city have forged a model for financial innovation in the AI era.
Sources:
BNY Mellon Corporate Reports and Website bny.com, bny.com; Pittsburgh Business Times and Technical.ly interviews pymnts.com technical.ly; IndexPGH and SPC Region news on BNY Mellon’s Pittsburgh AI Hub indexpgh.comspcregion.org; Reuters historical profile reuters.com; LinkedIn post by BNY Mellon Executives linkedin.com.
