In Catch-up Mode, Google Intros AI Agents for Financial, Legal Services

Google on Tuesday launched Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services and a similar legal industry version.The releases signify Google’s belated move toward vertical and domain-specific AI agents, following the example of Anthropic and OpenAI, the tech giant’s two main AI rivals.Both Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services and Legal are built on the Gemini Enterprise platform. The financial suite includes a Google-managed financial research agent, more than 50 new skills with specialized agentic instructions for financial roles and workflows, and enterprise data connectors. Similarly, Gemini Enterprise for Legal includes specialized skills for lawyers and connectors to specialized legal systems.Google is following a trend that frontier model creators such as Anthropic and OpenAI started more than a year ago, when Anthropic released Claude for Financial Services. Anthropic Claude Cowork also has specific plugins for the financial and legal sectors. OpenAI also offers plugins on its Codex platform used across industries, including finance.Related:Prompt: Agentic AI Is Outpacing Enterprise ReadinessWith other vendors already shifting toward domain-specific offerings, it appears that Google is launching Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services a little late.“Right now, Google is playing catch-up in a lot of ways,” said David Nicholson, an analyst at Futurum Group. “However, they are trying to make up for that by focusing on openness and the idea that you’re not going to ditch all of your existing processes.”The Question of NeutralityHe said that Google is trying to appeal to enterprises by pitching itself as a neutral platform layer that helps them with their existing processes. For instance, in a statement, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian highlighted that financial professionals want a platform that does not lock them into a single model or ecosystem and that is highly secure and compliant.However, enterprises might not care so much about lock-in, Nicholson said.“[Enterprises] are seeking to trust that agents work within frameworks and guardrails that a company trusts,” Nicholson said. He said that enterprises already within Google’s sphere know there are defined guardrails they can operate within.“They are more likely to trust Google on this than they are Anthropic or OpenAI as an individual standalone company,” Nicholson continued.Weaknesses and StrengthHowever, Google’s challenge is that it has fallen somewhat behind competitors such as OpenAI and Anthropic. While Gemini was at times ahead of ChatGPT and Claude in performance, the model has since been overtaken. Therefore, Google has much to do to catch up.Related:Nvidia’s New Open Model Is for Specific Use CasesMoreover, Google’s pitch as a neutral platform falls flat because, as a major player in the AI race, it has a motivation to stay ahead of OpenAI and Anthropic, which means it can’t be neutral, Nicholson added.“It’s unclear how much Google is going to gain from this argument that they’re neutral,” he said, adding that other vendors that are not so intertwined in the AI race couldappeal more to enterprises for the ability not to be tied to any one vendor.Google’s strength might lie more in its ability to provide the financial services industry with access to applications that aid their processes, often built on systems from CoinDesk Data & Indices, Daloopa, Dun & Bradstreet and FactSet, according to Sid Nag, founder and chief research officer of Tekonyx.“The strategic asset is not Gemini by itself, but Google’s ability to connect Gemini Enterprise through the connectors that are talked about to licensed data repositories in the area of financial industries,” Nag said.He added that the vendor could be superior by having a “strong enterprise control plane.”Nevertheless, the new Gemini Enterprise financial and legal systems show “Google is correctly shifting enterprise AI conversation from model capability to industry work for execution,” Nag said.Related:Meta Reverses Course with Open-Weight Muse GlimmerAbout the AuthorNews Writer, AI BusinessEsther Shittu has covered AI technologies and industry trends since 2021. As co-host of the Targeting AI podcast, she talks with experts, thought leaders and practitioners exploring critical AI developments. Before AI Business, she wrote for SearchEnterpriseAI, the New York Daily News, Bklyner and the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. When she's not diving deep into the world of AI, she spends her time on passion projects and raising her three daughters.