The UK's Financial Conduct Authority is to launch a 'Supercharged Sandbox' following establishment of a collaboration giving firms access to experimenting with artificial intelligence using NVIDIA computing and its AI Enterprise Software.
This Supercharged Sandbox will give firms access to better data, technical expertise and regulatory support to speed up innovation. It is open to any financial services firm looking to innovate and experiment with AI, the FCA stated.
The sandbox will help firms who are in the discovery and experiment phase with AI. An existing AI Live Testing service helps those further along in development and ready to use AI. In its new strategy, the FCA has committed to supporting economic growth by enabling innovation and harnessing technological advances like AI.
The development builds on the existing Digital Sandbox infrastructure provided by NayaOne, offering advanced compute power to accelerate AI innovation.
Jessica Rusu, FCA Chief Data, Intelligence and Information Officer, said: "This collaboration will help those that want to test AI ideas but who lack the capabilities to do so. We’ll help firms harness AI to benefit our markets and consumers, while supporting economic growth."
Jochen Papenbrock, EMEA Head of Financial Technology, NVIDIA, said: "AI is fundamentally reshaping the financial sector by automating processes, enhancing data analysis, and improving decision-making, which leads to greater efficiency, accuracy, and risk management across a wide range of financial activities. The FCA’s Supercharged Sandbox provides firms with a secure environment to explore AI innovations using NVIDIA’s full stack accelerated computing platform, supporting industry-wide growth and efficiency."
Firms can apply to use Supercharged Sandbox now through the FCA’s website.
Successful applicants will be able to experiment from October.
In April 2025, the FCA set out a proposal for AI Live Testing to support firms who are ready to use AI. The regulator is working to accelerate digital innovation in its response to the Prime Minister’s letter, including that it would avoid additional regulations for AI by relying on existing frameworks. Previously, in April 2024, the FCA set out its AI Update which outlines how its existing regulatory frameworks apply to firms’ use of AI.
