ElevenLabs Executive Reveals Two Critical Mistakes Banks Make with AI Agents

Banks and financial institutions increasingly adopt AI-powered solutions, but many struggle to move from proof-of-concept to production. The difference between success and stalled initiatives often comes down to two fundamental errors, according to Mark Susser, GTM Lead for Financial Services at ElevenLabs.

Speaking at FinovateFall 2026, Susser outlined the patterns he sees in failed AI rollouts across the sector. Organizations that stumble typically pursue overly broad platform strategies without identifying concrete business problems to solve, or they exclude compliance stakeholders from early planning stages.

The ones that stall out typically make one of two main mistakes: One is that they have too much of a broad platform initiative. Nothing specific to prove, no use case that has been picked out, and they're more focused on what the technology could do versus what the actual business needs. Another area that we see some faltering in is that they don't bring in their compliance partners from day one. What we find is that when compliance partners are brought in on day one, they're actually architecting the foundational elements that will make sure that it's successful and it'll get approved once it goes into production.

Successful deployments start with narrow, well-defined problems rather than sweeping transformation goals. Firms that identify specific pain points — whether in customer support, sales operations, or internal workflows — can demonstrate measurable value before scaling.

This approach allows teams to validate AI capabilities against actual business requirements instead of pursuing technology for its own sake. Susser emphasized that focusing on what the business needs, not what the technology could theoretically accomplish, separates projects that reach production from those that never leave pilot phase.

The second critical mistake involves treating compliance as a late-stage checkpoint rather than a foundational design partner. When risk and compliance teams join after technical architectures are already defined, projects often require costly rework or face outright rejection.

Early collaboration with compliance stakeholders helps teams build controls and audit trails into the system from the beginning. This proactive approach increases the likelihood of regulatory approval when solutions move to production, reducing delays and technical debt.

ElevenLabs builds voice and audio models designed for enterprise deployment at scale. The company's platform powers AI agents for sales, support, and business operations, as well as creative tools for marketing and media applications.

The London-based firm, founded in 2022, focuses on delivering intelligent customer experiences with the integrations, testing, monitoring, and reliability that financial services firms require. The platform aims to handle every customer interaction across an organization, from front-line sales to back-office operations.