Jamie Dimon says JPMorgan has to invest in AI or risk getting 'left behind'

• Jamie Dimon defended JPMorgan's spending, especially on tech, during Tuesday's earnings call.
• He said the bank would stay ahead as it competes against fintech companies, "so help us God."
• JPMorgan's annual tech budget was around $18 billion in 2025.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon defended the bank's significant spending, especially on AI and tech, during its Tuesday morning earnings call, noting that he's not only competing with other banking behemoths, but also fintech companies.

"We are going to stay out front, so help us God," Dimon said about the expenditures, capping off a somewhat fiery response to a question on the bank's spending from Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo. He said that the firm's not only competing against its traditional Wall Street rivals, but also fintechs like Stripe, SoFi, and Revolut, which "are good players."

He added, "We're not going to try to meet some expense target, and then 10 years from now, you'd be asking us a question, how did JPMorgan get left behind?"

In its fourth-quarter earnings presentation, JPMorgan projected spending around $9.7 billion more in 2026 than in 2025, prompting a question about anticipated returns on increased spending. JPMorgan has been ramping up artificial intelligence technologies across the firm, backed by an annual technology budget of about $18 billion.

Dimon didn't give specifics on the upcoming AI spending — he said that he's already "been quite blunt," but wouldn't provide information that risk putting him at "a competitive disadvantage" — but said he sees huge opportunities, including in AI. While he acknowledged concerns about big spending, he said that it's the right thing to do to grow the company.

"Part of it is to trust me, I'm sorry," Dimon said on the anticipated returns.

The CEO said that the bank will be spending more on AI, "but it is not a big driver" of increased expenditures. The technology will, however, likely drive future efficiency, he said.

Dimon said that the bank is investing across initiatives, but that tech spending can be harder to measure or evaluate.

"We need to have the best tech in the world," he continued. "That drives investment, it drives margin, it drives competition."

Last week, JPMorgan announced plans to discontinue its use of external proxy advisors for shareholder voting in the US. In place of external human advisors, the firm is launching an in-house AI platform, called Proxy IQ, to support shareholder decisions, according to the memo.

JPMorgan has implemented training programs and internal courses to teach tens of thousands of employees how to use AI tools effectively in their day-to-day work, executives have previously said.

The bank's top officials have said that junior staffers are likely to get their first experiences in management by overseeing the activities of agentic bots.

Artificial intelligence specialists and technologists are among Wall Street's most sought-after minds, pitting banks against hedge funds and Big Tech in a race to claim the top talent in the space.

Experts have told Business Insider in recent days to expect 2026 to be a landmark year for AI in banking, as its adoption becomes more widespread and roles experience material changes.