Citibank’s chief marketing and content officer Alex Craddock believes that despite the power of AI, the magic of great creative still comes from humans.

Craddock joined Citi in May from BlackRock after a restructure to oversee its marketing department and set a new strategy for original content and thought leadership, ADWEEK reported at the time.

He said that Citi is in the early stages of using AI and is focused on three things: content creation, personalization, and intelligence.

Speaking at the AI Trailblazers Growth Summit alongside former LendingTree chief marketing officer Shiv Singh, Craddock shared how AI is reshaping marketing and content strategies at Citi.

Balancing scale with personalization

Craddock believes that the biggest benefits of generative AI specifically are the impact, and therefore revenue, it can drive.

Because the financial industry is highly regulated, Craddock said that AI has helped Citi ensure it has the right disclosures on AI-generated content. It also uses data from its apps to personalize messaging based on user activity and banking information at scale.

Craddock said Citi still has a long way to go to incorporate AI into its workflows in a way that is affordable and legally adherent. However, his goal is to continue using the tech to create more effective marketing and anticipate the needs of Citi’s customers in real time.

“Yes, you’ve got regulations, rules, and guidelines that you have to work with, [but] they shouldn’t stop you [from] thinking with a vision,” he said.

AI as an enabler for humans

When it comes to concerns about AI’s threat to jobs, Craddock said people should think of it as an “enabler” and consider how it can be used to assist with mundane tasks, like writing emails.

“It should not replace the human touch,” he said. “The magic is in humans, and I think if we forget that, we will end up in a dreadful world where bots are speaking to us all the time.”

In early October, Citi shared its gen AI strategy, including how it is training its workforce to use the technology and how it is using it to provide better experiences for its clients.