Guidance and core principles
The Pensions Regulator has released guidance encouraging pension scheme trustees to examine how artificial intelligence might improve efficiency, value for money, and member outcomes. The guidance outlines seven key principles for trustees and scheme managers: starting with the problem rather than the technology, keeping human responsibility central, ensuring ongoing governance, planning for disruption, relying on good data, using transparency and explainability to build trust, and supporting fair and accessible outcomes. Ben Gunnee, the regulator's executive director of market oversight, noted that while trustees do not need to be AI experts, they remain accountable for knowing where technology is used and challenging providers effectively.
Adoption rates and existing duties
The guidance clarifies how existing duties and governance apply to artificial intelligence rather than imposing new regulatory requirements. Research cited by the regulator indicates that 86% of respondent financial services firms currently use AI, up from 75% in 2024, according to a joint Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority survey. In the pensions sector, an Aon survey of 61 UK defined benefit pension schemes found that 76% reported some use of AI by trustees, while 61% did not know how their advisers used AI and 73% carried out no specific assessment of their providers' AI governance. To assist trustees, a newly developed AI jargon buster has also been provided through an industry working group.