Over the next three months, the companies will work closely with a team of Barclays executives, the Techstars worldwide network, and other industry leaders to refine and validate their business models. At the end of the program, the businesses will highlight their progress and showcase their innovative FinTech propositions at a demo day in New York City.

The ten companies in this year’s program are driving innovation in capital markets, consumer FinTech, and HR technology. Many of them utilize various techniques to leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their development of products.

“Barclays has been heavily invested in utilizing AI for a number of years. We are integrating AI and decision support technologies across our company in order to create better experiences for our customers and clients. I look forward to seeing how these ten startups evolve their business propositions and how they leverage AI in doing so,” said John Stecher, Chief Innovation Officer at Barclays.

“Barclays is focused on providing all parts of our businesses with the knowledge, tools, and people needed to successfully incorporate AI techniques and AI-enabled products in order to deliver differentiated value for our customers and clients," added Stecher. "Expanding on that model, the majority of the startups participating in the upcoming program rely on AI for their products to deliver the value that they propose.”

"This year’s New York program received an incredible response, with a record number of applications from 68 countries,” said Mariquit Corcoran, Director of Partnerships and Programs at Barclays. “The Barclays Accelerator, powered by Techstars, truly helps participating companies advance their business development strategy and provides enterprise-ready feedback to the program participants. With 13 completed programs, the Barclays Accelerator, powered by Techstars, is presently one of the largest single-bank-powered portfolios globally, with more than 130 companies currently valued at over $650 million.”

The ten companies of the 2018 New York class of the Barclays Accelerator, powered by Techstars, are:

Applica - a model that replaces humans in business processes requiring understanding of text
FairFrame - an application that enables Artificial Intelligence-enhanced thinking about diversity in the workplace
Fintros - a finance career discovery platform that anonymizes candidate profiles and introduces them to top employers
Harvest - a personal finance platform that helps consumers identify and negotiate bank fees
Honeyfi - a platform that helps couples integrate their finances and save for goals together
Pluto Money. - a financial wellness app for Gen Zs, which allows users to save for their goals and improve their money habits by completing challenges tailored to their finances
ResonanceX - a digital marketplace for structured investments trading
SendFriend - a platform that aims to be the leading-edge blockchain remittance provider
Vector - a platform that creates research-led Artificial Intelligence solutions for companies involved in international trade
Waffle Insurance - a digital platform that offers holistic insurance protection through one, single, personalized policy covering every aspect of the customer’s need