Making a habit of Starbucks? Starling Bank launches AI tool that assesses spending routines

Starling Bank has launched an AI-powered spending analysis tool that answers natural language questions about customers’ financial habits, such as revealing how much they’ve spent at specific retailers like McDonald’s over any given period. Built with Google Gemini, the “enhanced search” feature automatically categorizes transactions across more than 50 customizable categories and provides personalized spending insights through conversational prompts.

How it works: The opt-in AI tool transforms traditional banking data into an interactive financial advisor that responds to everyday questions about spending patterns.

• Customers can ask questions like “How much did I spend at Amazon last month?” or “How much money have I wasted on fast food this year?” and receive detailed breakdowns with graphs and analytics.
• Transactions are automatically sorted into categories like bills, transport, and groceries, with the AI suggesting personalized prompts based on individual spending patterns.
• The tool presents spending data through visual graphs alongside breakdowns of individual payments to specific retailers within each category.

Why this matters: This represents a significant leap forward in making personal financial data actionable rather than just trackable, addressing a common pain point in digital banking.

• Traditional banking apps can track payments to retailers but struggle to help users easily manipulate and understand their financial data in meaningful ways.
• The conversational interface makes financial analysis accessible to users who might otherwise avoid diving into complex spending reports.

What they’re saying: Starling Bank positions this as part of democratizing financial literacy through intuitive technology.

• “We believe that anyone and everyone can be ‘Good with money,’ so we’ve designed this feature so that people can engage with their finances in a way that feels natural to them,” says Harriet Rees, chief information officer of Starling Bank.
• “The more you talk or type, the more you’ll learn about your money management.”

Competitive landscape: Starling’s AI tool highlights the ongoing digital banking race in the UK, where challenger banks continue to outpace traditional institutions in innovative features.

• Starling now serves 4.6 million customer accounts, competing against Monzo’s more than 12 million customers and Revolut’s more than 10 million users.
• All three digital-first banks remain ahead of traditional banks in offering features like virtual debit cards, spending habit tracking, and real-time transaction processing.