About Darren Bak
Head of Intelligent Data, Synthesis Software Technologies
Technology executive with 18+ years building and scaling businesses across banking, consulting, and enterprise software. Currently leading European market expansion and emerging technology commercialization in dual executive roles at Synthesis.
Our teams driving ambition is to achieve global recognition as the foremost technical experts in cloud-native, real-time, responsive AI applications. We aim to challenge the way businesses operate, leveraging deep technical expertise and a profound commitment to customer success across all markets we serve. Our innovative work earned Google Bluesprint (GenAI) and AWS GenAI Prize of Excellence awards. Demonstrating our commitment to impactful solutions, we were named AWS Social Impact Partner of the Year for our SASSA Grants WhatsApp chatbot during Covid – a testament to how we care and apply our technical domain expertise for an improved South Africa.
Talk topic
Designing AI with Purpose: Principles from Abby’s Journey
In this talk, the team shares the behind-the-scenes journey of the Absa Abby AI Assistant. From humble beginnings as a glorified FAQ bot, Abby is transforming into a sophisticated AI agent capable of understanding context, handling complex queries, and delivering real value to customers.
As Abby’s intelligence matured, her capabilities were scaled across channels, culminating in innovations like ChatWallet, a digital wallet built inside WhatsApp that expanded financial accessibility and broke down barriers to traditional banking.
More recently, the team has been actively exploring the power of agentic AI and what it can unlock for customer experience, operational efficiency, and commercial value. Throughout Abby’s evolution, the principles of building trust and the shift of data privacy beyond just a policy into a core part of the customer experience remain central, shaping every design decision.
Co-speakers:
