Insig AI & Falcon Windsor publish research re FTSE

How to get the best out of 'Your Precocious Intern' - a guiding principle for the responsible use of AI in corporate reporting

Insig AI plc (AIM:INSG), the data science and machine learning solutions company delivering advanced data infrastructure and AI-powered ESG research tools and specialist reporting and advisory firm Falcon Windsor, ('the authors') today publish 'Your Precocious Intern', an in-depth research paper and practical model for the responsible use of AI in corporate reporting.

This report, based on engagement with 40 FTSE companies and analysis of all FTSE 350 reports published from 2020 to 2024 reveals that generative AI use is increasing across UK companies, often without training, policy or oversight. While investors see AI's adoption as inevitable and look forward to the benefits and efficiencies it could bring, they are increasingly concerned about its implications for the truthfulness and authorship of corporate reporting. Practitioners and investors agree that reporting must remain the direct expression of management's opinion and that without guidance, AI use in reporting risks undermining the accuracy, authenticity and accountability that underpin trust in markets.

The growing momentum in the adoption of AI leaves only a short window of opportunity to upskill and prepare to mitigate the risks it represents to the financial system. The report sets out clear recommendations for how companies can bring AI into the reporting process by design, not by accident. At its core is the guiding principle: treat generative AI like a precocious intern: useful, quick, capable, but inexperienced, prone to overconfidence and should never be left unsupervised.

Diana Rose, Head of ESG Solutions at Insig AI, said: "The responsible use of AI is intrinsic to Insig AI's purpose and we hope that our collaboration with Falcon Windsor provokes thinking and provides guidance to all those involved in corporate reporting as they consider how to leverage AI tools for future ways of working, without compromising the flow of trusted information."

Richard Bernstein, Chief Executive at Insig AI, said: "A generation ago, it was the internet that transformed so many aspects of business. Today, generative AI is set to result in equally transformational consequences. It is therefore now incumbent on businesses to understand and embrace it. We are pleased to have co-authored this detailed research and to have partnered with the specialist expertise of Claire Bodanis and the team at Falcon Windsor."

Claire Bodanis, Founder and Director, Falcon Windsor, said:

"I'm keen to try anything that will help companies report better, and, used well to support the purpose of reporting, generative AI could certainly do great things. But, if people use it unthinkingly, without proper training or guidelines, it could fatally undermine the accuracy and truthfulness of reporting. I hope this research will prompt the necessary debate!"