Advancing AI research: industry & academia collaborations

Advancing AI in financial services requires a powerful combination of industry expertise and academic ingenuity. At Capital One, we are committed to fostering AI research collaborations with universities and research organizations to address complex challenges in machine learning and responsible AI. By bridging academic insights with real-world applications, we strive to develop cutting-edge AI solutions that enhance financial services, improve AI safety and ensure responsible AI adoption in banking.

We achieve this through several key engagement paths including:

• Academic Centers of Excellence: Dedicated university research centers, established through long-term partnerships, focused on a shared AI research theme. 

• Faculty collaborations: Targeted AI research projects with individual faculty members, allowing us to tap into specialized expertise across various institutions.

• Strategic internship programs: These programs, including the Applied Research Internship Program (ARIP) and Tech Incubator Internship Program, offer students real-world experience and connect us with the next generation of AI talent through hands-on projects.

At Capital One, our commitment to academic collaboration is realized through three core engagement initiatives that bridge innovative AI research with talent development:

Capital One is on an accelerated journey to deepen our partnerships with academia, and our hallmark initiative in this effort is the establishment of Academic Centers of Excellences (ACEs). These dedicated university research centers, created through multi-year partnerships, represent a significant, long-term commitment to collaborative AI research. Each ACE is built around a shared research mission, strategically aligned with both Capital One’s priorities and the university’s distinct research strengths. This focused approach allows for deep learning and exploration of specific AI domains, creating the potential for significant advances in technology. In 2023, we launched two ACEs, marking a significant step in our commitment to fostering AI innovation and development through academic collaboration.

Each ACE fosters a vibrant research ecosystem, providing funding opportunities for faculty AI research projects, supporting PhD fellowships, and facilitating ongoing engagement through workshops and symposia. This collaborative environment brings together leading academics from various disciplines, encouraging cross-pollination of ideas and accelerating the pace of innovation in artificial intelligence. For more details on our specific centers, you can explore the Columbia Center for AI and Responsible Innovation University Center (CAIRFI) and the USC Center for Responsible AI and Decision Making in Finance (CREDIF).

While Academic Centers of Excellence offer deep engagement within specific research areas at a single institution, faculty collaborations allow us to connect with a wider range of experts across multiple universities. This broader reach enables us to tackle diverse research challenges by partnering with individual faculty members with specialized expertise.

For example, we were thrilled to support Professor Andrew Gordon Wilson and his research team at New York University (NYU) to explore efficient linear layers for neural networks. This collaboration, which was published as "Searching for Efficient Linear Layers over a Continuous Space of Structured Matrices," explores new methods for improving the computational efficiency of large neural networks, which can help in developing more sustainable and scalable AI solutions. Improved computational efficiency allows us to train larger, more complex models while using fewer resources. This has practical applications for enhancing the performance of our AI systems, contributing to enhancements in areas such as fraud detection and personalized customer experiences. By investigating these core questions in neural network architecture, we contribute to the broader scientific advancement of the field.

Developing the next generation of AI talent is a key component of Capital One's AI strategy. Our strategic internship programs are designed to engage students at all levels, from undergraduates to PhD candidates. These programs offer a valuable opportunity for students to apply their academic knowledge to real-world challenges in financial services, bridging the gap between theory and practice. 

Our internship programs provide aspiring researchers with hands-on experience working alongside Capital One's applied researchers and engineers. Interns contribute to impactful projects, gaining valuable exposure to the complexities and opportunities of applying AI within a large organization. This experience can inform their future research, provide context for their academic work and broaden their understanding of potential career paths in technology. We believe that investing in the next generation of AI talent is essential for driving innovation and ensuring the long-term health of the field. Our AI tools and engineering expertise provide the necessary support to ensure the success of these initiatives.

Capital One offers a range of internship opportunities tailored to different student levels and research interests.

• Applied Research Internship Program (ARIP): This program offers PhD students who have completed at least their second year a 12-week summer internship focused on a range of cutting-edge AI research areas.

• Tech Incubator Internship Programs: Our Tech Incubator programs at the University of Maryland and University of Illinois provide year-round internship opportunities for undergraduate and master's students, focusing on topics like LLMs, data labeling and data detection. 

As we look to the future of AI research and talent, academic partnerships will continue to be essential for driving innovation in the field. By fostering these collaborations—from supporting foundational research to training the next generation of AI practitioners—we can unlock the full potential of AI to transform financial services and ultimately create better banking experiences for our customers. By participating in these programs, students and AI research interns gain access to AI technologies that transform their professional trajectory. We're excited to continue working alongside academia to push the boundaries of what's possible.

New to tech at Capital One? We touch every aspect of the research life cycle, from collaborating with Academia to building leading-edge AI products:

• See how our AI research is advancing the state of the art in AI for financial services.

• Learn how we’re delivering value to millions of customers with proprietary AI solutions.

• Explore AI research jobs and join our world-class team in changing banking for good.