Customers Bank CEO Sam Sidhu grabbed attention during Friday’s first-quarter earnings call when he revealed that an AI version of himself had delivered the opening remarks to analysts. This happened nearly 30 minutes into the discussion.
“The prepared remarks you heard on my behalf today were delivered by my AI clone, not read by me,” Sidhu said, calling it potentially the first time a public company has done this.
The stunt underscored the $25.9 billion asset bank’s deep commitment to artificial intelligence, particularly in supporting startups and small businesses. In a multiyear partnership exclusively reported by CNBC, OpenAI will place engineers inside Customers Bank to automate lending and customer onboarding.
Sidhu aims to lead the banking sector’s shift towards AI agents as a digital workforce, speeding up processes like loan approvals from weeks to days without adding staff proportionally. He ties the technology to concrete goals, expecting the bank’s efficiency ratio to improve from 49 per cent to the low 40s and boost returns from next year.
OpenAI sees finance as a priority and has hired former bankers to refine its models. “We’re going to be co-creating enterprise solutions they could potentially sell to other banks in the future,” Sidhu said. “The goal here is end-to-end, automated agentic led workflow for lending, deposits, and payments.”
OpenAI Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser said the firm is proud to help Customers Bank build a more intelligent operating model that empowers employees, strengthens client service, and sets a new standard for regional banking.
The bank plans to roll out AI across lending, deposits, and payments in six to 12 months, potentially cutting commercial loan times from 30 to 45 days to seven days. Account openings for complex clients could drop to under 20 minutes.
“When you have an autonomous agent, you’re essentially creating a digital worker and they can work around the clock,” Sidhu added.
Already using AI for half its software coding and saving 28,000 hours, the bank enjoys an advantage over giants like JPMorgan Chase due to lighter regulatory burdens for smaller players. This deal builds on ties since 2023 and could enable new AI-driven businesses.
“It’s going to benefit our investors. It’s going to benefit our customers,” Sidhu said. “Our regulators will hopefully also be happier over time, because they’re going to see us reducing risk as well.”