Overview and Concept
Central banks and financial authorities face two technology transformations moving on very different clocks. Artificial intelligence (AI) is already changing how institutions analyze data, organize work, supervise firms and defend critical systems. Quantum computing remains experimental, yet the migration required to protect cryptographic trust must begin well before a sufficiently capable machine exists.
The common challenge is not predicting the technology perfectly, but deciding how a public institution should act before certainty while preserving judgment, accountability, independence and public trust. For AI, the immediate task is to move from fragmented experimentation to measurable value at scale. For quantum computing, near-term computational value remains uncertain, but the security transition is already actionable.
This round table therefore advances a two-speed agenda: scale AI deliberately by prioritizing high-value applications and embedding risk, ethics and human accountability from the outset; and prepare for quantum early by identifying cryptographic exposure, building crypto-agility, protecting long-lived information and coordinating migration across the financial ecosystem.
Across both technologies, the discussion will examine how central banks can avoid both hype and paralysis: acting early where delay compounds risk while resisting premature technology bets that are not linked to mandate value.
