Zest AI

From Denver to Boston, LA to Austin, today we gathered as a team to celebrate Q2 with, per usual, a whole lot of Zest fun! Each time we come together you can feel the Zest Heart radiate. Exciting updates were shared from our leadership team and we shined the spotlight on our fellow Zesty's who exude our mission and core values! #Heart #Community #Culture #CompanyCulture #GreatPlaceToWork #DreamTeam #FinTech #FairLending #FinancialInclusion #Inclusivity

Meet Saar Yalov, Zest AI’s rockstar Director of Data Science and runner up Zesty foosball champion! Saar has been an integral part of Zest’s growth. We love his passion for learning and building new things and making an impact. Take a behind the scenes look at our tech team and help us celebrate these exceptional individuals! #FinTech #DreamTeam #Culture #Heart #BestPlaceToWork #Technology #Innovation #AI

Zest AI CEO Mike de Vere offered thoughts on AI governance at the recent HFSC Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy hearing chaired by Rep. Barr: “We ask that our leaders promote rules that both protect people and encourage innovation. We ask that compliance and fairness become more than a box to check and that governance uplifts those pursuing fairness as an outcome, not just as a by-product." This theme also emerged from the testimony during yesterday’s HFSC hearing on AI in Financial Services. Without question, there are robust regulations and governance frameworks already applicable to AI/ML usage in the financial services sector, and these existing requirements offer a roadmap for how existing law can be applied to regulated activities transformed by algorithms. ✅ Federal consumer financial law requires notices to consumers about their data to inform them that their data is being used to make decisions. ✅ Permissible uses of consumer data are outlined in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. ✅ Bans on discrimination and a basis for establishing anti-bias approaches flow from the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. ✅ Banking agency third party risk management guidance requires financial service providers to monitor and manage certain activities of third-party vendors, including models acquired through them. ✅ Banking agency model risk management guidance provides a framework for financial institutions and vendors to manage models, primarily through testing and validation. However, it is clear that there is more legislators can do to advance consumer- and compliance-centric utilization of AI/ML in financial services: ✅ Focus on addressing gaps in existing law and public datasets so that (i) applicable law is clear and (ii) the best datasets are not monopolized for the benefit of a few. ✅ Support new credit underwriting/scoring systems that improve on legacy approaches with embedded bias. ✅ Clarify that transparent AI/ML is an accepted tool for use in financial services and for boosting regulatory compliance. #FinTech #Regulation #Data #Underwriting #Fairness #Responsible #Equitable #Purpose #B2B #Innovation #CreditUnion #Bank

So, what is AI-automated Underwriting?! It’s the smart, inclusive, and efficient way to uplevel your lending speed and accuracy. We find our brain, our heart, and our courage in the tools, or friends, we pick up along the journey to a better lending experience. Read more! https://lnkd.in/d3b9ssp7 #AI #MachineLearning #Underwriting #Lending #LendingTech #Inclusivity #FinTech #FinancialServices #FairLending #FinancialInclusion

Today the House Financial Services Committee hosted a ground-breaking hearing on #AI in financial services. Thank you Representative Lynch for your leadership of the #bipartisan #AI working group. Congressman Stephen Lynch and his tireless focus on beating the #bias in our #FinancialServices system is changing outcomes for the better for millions of #Americans. The AI working group’s studied and deliberate approach to gathering up-to-date intelligence from leading thinkers and practitioners is paving the way to catalyze economic equity in the U.S. by leveraging AI's potential for good. Zest AI develops, de-biases, validates, monitors, and supports fairer underwriting AI/ML models with our financial institution clients across the country to fulfill our mission to broaden access to equitable lending. When technology is purpose-built by developers focused on ethical and responsible development it can become a tool for humanity to do good in the world. Zest AI is excited to meet this moment, honored to contribute our expertise to these deliberations, and look forward to engaging more with Members as the committees of jurisdiction take up these complex issues. #FinTech #Regulation #Data #Underwriting #Fairness #Responsible #Equitable #Purpose #B2B #Innovation Devina Khanna

Zest AI applauds Congress’ bipartisan pursuit of technical insights into #AI, as evidenced in the July 18 HFSC AI Working Group report. The Committee staff takeaways in the report provide a solid foundation for federal AI policy development, and we look forward to continued engagement. It is crucial to include AI #developers — like Zest AI — in #policy conversations because AI is a broad term encompassing many applications, and the use cases for AI in #FinancialServices vary widely, especially when it comes to benefits and risks.  It’s our experience that purpose-built AI #technology can help financial institutions meet, or even exceed, regulatory obligations, and Zest AI is grateful for any opportunity we have to contribute our expertise to Members’ deliberations, including to this report. https://lnkd.in/dhdrwqQQ #FinTech #Regulation #Data #Underwriting #Fairness #Responsible #Equitable #Purpose

Delinquencies and charge-offs are rising at an alarming rate: monthly debt burden for consumers grew 32% from 2020-2023, and delinquencies on credit cards are at an all-time high. What are credit unions to do? The old strategy is to hold back and add more guardrails for borrowers. But when these methods don't produce accurate results, we run into trouble. Implementing #AI technology means using more data and better math to meaningfully reduce risk. Read our latest blog about what causes delinquencies, and more importantly, what your credit union can do about them. https://lnkd.in/gQK6au_H #CreditUnions #MachineLearning #LendingInsights #Underwriting

Team Zest AI is heading off to Vegas next week! We will be at the CU Leadership Convention hosted by AACUC to chat about how we can help credit unions lend more inclusively. Come find us at booth 1408 If you want to learn more about efficiency in #AI underwriting. We can’t wait! #CULeaders #AACUC2024 #CULC2024 #MachineLearning #CreditUnions #FinTech #Inclusivity

Introducing Women @ Zest, spotlighting the #LeadingLadies behind Team Zest AI! Meet Denisse Damian 👩💻, Software Engineer! She’s played an integral role in growing Zest to where it is today! Read more from Denisse on her journey to software engineering and FinTech, advice for advocating for yourself, and her accomplishments and love for coffee. #WomenAtZest #WomenInTech #Culture #DreamTeam #BestPlaceToWork #WomenInSTEM #FinTech #Technology #Innovation #AI #Engineering

Zest AI CEO Mike de Vere was thrilled to share insights with Federal Reserve Board Vice Chair Michael Barr last week, just one day after his speech at the Financial Inclusion Practices and Innovations Conference, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, D.C. Vice Chair Barr described how the financial inclusion status quo needs improvement and how fintech innovation can be part of the solution. He noted that “... traditional credit models favor an applicant that already has a sufficient credit history and a file from a credit reporting bureau to qualify for lending. This leads to a catch-22 where lower-income applicants with scant credit history but ample ability to repay are denied access to credit because they do not have a credit history. As a result, many lower-income households, both banked and unbanked, end up using a range of formal and informal services outside the banking system that too often keep households in a cycle of debt.” As Mike shared with Vice Chair Barr, Zest AI is committed to broadening access to equitable lending so that people aren’t stuck with predatory options. The AI we’ve built has supported $1 trillion in originations, and counting. We build AI lending technology for banks and credit unions who want to use better data and better math to assess all of their customers more effectively and to include borrowers who would have otherwise been left out. It was a busy week last week, but Mike and Yolanda D. McGill found a moment to snap a selfie! #CreditUnion #FinTech #AI #FinancialServices #Regulation #Data #Bank #Underwriting #Fairness #Responsible #Equitable #Purpose