JB Financial Group will work with AI company Upstage to develop finance-focused AI agents that can be applied on the job. Key affiliates including Jeonbuk Bank, Gwangju Bank and JB Woori Capital will take part to expand group-wide AI transformation (AX).

JB Financial said on Wednesday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Upstage on Sept. 14 for a strategic partnership for cooperation in finance and AI technologies and businesses.

The two companies agreed to jointly develop AI agents tailored to financial operations using Upstage’s large language model (LLM) technology and to identify AI tasks that can be applied in actual financial workplaces.

The scope of cooperation will expand beyond introducing AI technology to include joint education in finance and AI, personnel exchanges, identifying AI businesses linked with local governments and communities, and participation in related consortiums.

Upstage is participating as a lead company in the government’s "independent AI foundation model" project and is developing its own LLMs including Solar Pro4. JB Financial plans to review ways to apply such technology to work at its affiliates including banks and capital businesses.

The partners will also pursue region-linked projects. They agreed to set up education programs to foster talent in finance and AI convergence and to discuss ways to jointly identify AI businesses with local governments and communities.

They will also examine possible links with overseas businesses. JB Financial plans to review ways to identify new business opportunities by applying Upstage’s AI solutions to infrastructure at its Southeast Asian local subsidiaries.

JB Financial Chairman Ki-hong Kim (김기홍) said the partnership was a starting point for jointly creating finance-focused AI that can be used immediately in financial workplaces. He said the group would identify global business opportunities by linking with its Southeast Asian local subsidiaries, as well as pursuing financial innovation and mutually beneficial cooperation with local communities.