The news: Starling Bank has launched "Smart tools,” a set of AI features built into Starling Assistant, per FF News. The bank will release new capabilities weekly through the rest of 2026, starting with tools that generate savings plans, flag scams in real time, and calculate VAT for business customers. Starling is crowdsourcing feature ideas directly from users to shape the rollout and will eventually let customers build their own AI tools.

Why this matters: Starling's roadmap leads beyond task automation to individualized banking. Custom-built AI tools would mean no two customers use the same version of the app, with the experience adapting to their specific financial habits.

That vision goes further than most rivals, who are largely using AI to automate tasks within a common interface. Revolut has rolled out an in-app financial assistant, and Fifth Third is launching an AI interface for its mobile app, using natural language to simplify how customers navigate its products and services.

Consumers will likely be receptive to AI-powered banking experiences like Starling’s. Two-thirds of US adult genAI users have sought financial advice through it, per Credit Karma, and 85% of adults say they're open to sharing more financial data with their bank for a clear payoff, per Oliver Wyman. That suggests banks have room to push offerings toward more individualized experiences.

Implications for banks: Starling's model could reset consumer expectations for personalization beyond banking. Users accustomed to a financial app configured around their specific habits may start expecting similar flexibility from other digital products.

For banks, this raises the stakes of AI competition. A chatbot layered onto a static app may not be enough; the product itself needs to vary by customer, a heavier lift than adding a conversational interface. Starling's weekly release cadence and crowdsourced feature requests could give it a head start in building that flexibility.

This content is part of EMARKETER’s subscription Briefings, where we pair daily updates with data and analysis from forecasts and research reports. Our Briefings prepare you to start your day informed, to provide critical insights in an important meeting, and to understand the context of what’s happening in your industry. Non-clients can click here to get a demo of our full platform and coverage.