Learn more about the advantages of participating in the FinTech Innovation Lab New York
NEW YORK; October 5, 2026 – The FinTech Innovation Lab New York is now accepting applications for its 2027 class. Co-founded by Accenture and the Partnership Fund for New York City, the 12-week program pairs early- and growth-stage fintech and insurtech companies with senior leaders from top financial institutions and venture capital firms, giving founders direct access to the people who buy, deploy, and scale enterprise technology.
The Lab is built for entrepreneurs creating enterprise technology for financial services, spanning banking, payments, insurance, and capital markets. Over the last 17 years, the program has helped make New York City a hub for fintech innovation, and its alumni have raised more than $4 billion and completed 35 acquisitions. New this year, the Lab is launching a Pilot Track for growth-stage companies in AI Guardrails and Governance, giving them the chance to pursue proofs of concept with participating financial institutions alongside the full mentorship program.
Applications for the 2027 class are open and available here. Companies are encouraged to apply early, with limited space available before applications close on November 25th. Prospective applicants can learn more at an in-person information session on November 3rd or a virtual session on November 12th.
Based on feedback from senior executives at participating financial institutions, this year’s Lab is searching for promising early- and growth-stage companies developing solutions in 10 major areas:
- AI Governance and Guardrails tools that govern and secure AI agents in production, embedding compliance, oversight, and control mechanisms across enterprise deployments;
- Enterprise AI Operating Layer tools that connect AI models, data, and enterprise systems, bridging technical infrastructure with the business teams that use it;
- Digital Asset tools that support operations spanning blockchain infrastructure, custody and wallet solutions, stablecoin issuance, tokenized deposits, and cross-border settlement rails;
- Token and Cost Optimization tools that help organizations optimize the cost and efficiency of AI at scale while demonstrating return on investment;
- Agentic Commerce tools that enable autonomous agents to transact and deliver financial services on behalf of consumers and businesses across partner ecosystems;
- Cyber and Data Security tools that protect enterprise AI and data environments from modern and emerging threats, including access controls, application security, and post-quantum readiness;
- Risk Management and Fraud Detection tools that support financial institutions in managing risk and fraud across operations, from detection and prevention to compliance oversight and third-party risk management;
- Context and Knowledge Capture tools that prepare enterprise data and institutional knowledge for AI use, including document ingestion, knowledge graphs, process discovery, and data traceability;
- Client Engagement and Personalization tools that deliver personalized, AI-powered client experiences, spanning portfolio analytics, embedded banking, payments modernization, credit solutions, and advisor enablement;
- AI-Augmented Software Delivery tools that support engineering teams as agents take on more of the build, covering evaluation and testing frameworks, release safety, delivery coordination, and legacy modernization.
While the above list reflects our partners’ stated priorities, if you are developing a new solution that is not on this list but relevant for financial services—and cutting edge—we welcome you to apply as well.
This year, the Lab is launching a Pilot Track for growth-stage companies in AI Guardrails and Governance. Pilot Track companies will join the same mentorship program as the broader cohort while also working with Accenture’s Innovation Garage to pursue proofs of concept (POCs) with participating financial institutions. These structured, limited-scope engagements test how a solution addresses a specific business need in a real financial institution environment, and results will be shared across the Lab’s mentor network.
The Pilot Track is seeking companies with this profile:
- AI Governance and Guardrails Focus: Companies developing solutions in security and risk and any related technologies that help Financial Institutions safely adopt and manage AI.
- Growth-stage companies: Companies with a proven, production-ready product, existing deployments, and the enterprise-grade security, compliance, and technical capabilities required to work with Financial Institutions.
- Pilot ready: Companies addressing a specific, high-value Financial Institution use case and prepared to work with our partners on a structured POC.
The final class of companies will be selected through a competitive process where senior technology executives from more than 40 participating financial institutions will determine the 2027 class. The Lab will then partner the selected fintechs with senior-level executives from the participating institutions, who will help them develop and enhance their technologies and business strategies through a series of one-on-one meetings, panel discussions, user-group sessions and networking opportunities, including with leading technology and corporate luminaries. The program will begin in March and culminate in June 2027 with a Demo Day, where the class will present to an audience of venture capitalists and financial industry executives.
“New York’s place as the world’s financial capital is not guaranteed; it is earned by backing the companies that will define what comes next. For 17 years, the FinTech Innovation Lab has put the city’s leading financial institutions in the room with the founders building the technology to move them forward, and that is how New York stays at the forefront of innovation,” said Maria Gotsch, President and CEO of the Partnership Fund for New York City.
The full list of participating financial institutions and venture capital partners can be found here.
For additional questions about eligibility, program structure, and the application process, visit the full FAQ section on our website here.
# # #
Contact:
FIL NYC