Shinhan Financial Group held a launch ceremony on Jan. 13 at its headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, for AX Innovation Leaders, the group's key talent for AI Transformation (AX). It said on Jan. 14 it is shifting to a workplace-led, groupwide AX execution phase.

Shinhan Financial selected 100 AX Innovation Leaders, mainly practitioners from major subsidiaries, judging that the success of AX depends on workplace-led execution. They will lead efforts to deliver tangible results in their respective areas of work by identifying AI- and data-based work innovation tasks and redesigning repetitive and inefficient work from an AX perspective.

They will first complete basic training on planning, designing and developing AI agents that can be used immediately in the workplace, along with advanced training tailored to each company's work environment. They will then directly design and implement AI agents optimized for their work using internal generative AI and unstructured data platforms, building AX execution experience and expertise.

Shinhan Financial plans to steadily expand and develop AX Innovation Leaders to embed AX as a daily way of working for all employees. It will also run AI capability programs for all staff in parallel to accelerate AX internalisation.

Chairman Jin Ok-dong, other senior executives and the 100 AX Innovation Leaders selected from across the group attended the launch ceremony. They shared plans going forward and, through a talk concert with executives, formed a consensus on an execution-focused direction for AX.

Jin said, "If last year we checked awareness and potential for AX through AI education for executives, this year is the time to move to a stage where all employees actually use AI in the field." He added, "I hope the 100 AX Innovation Leaders will maximise their ability to use AI agents and serve as a catalyst to raise AX competitiveness across the group."