Bank of Baroda Launches ‘bob SAMVAD’, an AI Platform To Transform Branch Interactions

A customer walks into a bank branch in Chennai and speaks in Tamil. The staff member responds in Hindi. Neither switches languages, yet both understand each other instantly. That interaction, once dependent on human translation or guesswork, is now being positioned as routine inside branches of Bank of Baroda.

The state-owned lender introduced “bob SAMVAD,” a multilingual conversational platform built on artificial intelligence, at an event in Mumbai on March 28, 2026. The system is designed to enable real-time communication between customers and staff who may not share a common language, a persistent barrier in India’s diverse banking landscape.

The launch was led by Shri M. Nagaraju, Secretary at the Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance, the central government body that oversees public sector banks and financial institutions. He described the platform as a step toward more inclusive service delivery, particularly in regions where language differences often slow transactions or create confusion.

AI multilingual banking platform India rollout plan

Bank of Baroda said the platform has been developed entirely in-house using artificial intelligence-driven speech and language technologies. It supports two-way communication across 22 Indian languages, translating conversations in real time with what the bank described as low latency and contextual accuracy.

At the service counter, customers can speak or type queries in their preferred language. The system translates the input instantly into the staff member’s selected language. The response is then converted back for the customer. The conversation appears as text on a screen, with an optional voice feature that reads out responses for users who prefer audio.

Dr. Debadatta Chand, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Baroda, said the platform reflects a shift toward technology-led customer experience. “With bob SAMVAD, Bank of Baroda is leveraging AI to make our branches more inclusive and customer-friendly by enabling seamless real-time conversations in local languages,” Chand said. “This initiative reflects our commitment to operational excellence by combining technology with customer-centric design.” [1]

The bank plans to roll out the system in phases. In the first stage, bob SAMVAD will be deployed across 250 branches in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. These states were selected for their linguistic diversity and large customer bases. A wider rollout across the bank’s national network is expected to follow.

India’s banking system operates across dozens of languages and dialects, often requiring staff to navigate communication gaps, particularly in rural or semi-urban branches. Public sector banks such as Bank of Baroda, which serves millions of customers across regions, have faced operational challenges linked to language barriers. The introduction of AI-led translation tools marks an attempt to standardize communication without requiring additional staffing or language training.

DFS Secretary Nagaraju comments on inclusive banking technology

Nagaraju, speaking at the launch, said the platform could improve both efficiency and accessibility. He credited the bank with using technology to address a long-standing structural issue in service delivery. “bob SAMVAD will promote more inclusive and accessible service delivery and help improve customer service at branches,” he said, adding that the initiative sets a benchmark for the banking sector. [2]

The launch also coincided with a visit by Nagaraju to “bob Forest,” a sustainability project developed at the bank’s Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) office in Mumbai. The 6,000-square-foot green space is designed to promote biodiversity and improve air quality, part of a broader set of environmental, social and governance initiatives undertaken by the bank.

Bank of Baroda has previously introduced programs such as green deposits and green bonds, aligning its operations with sustainability targets set by the government and global financial standards. The addition of bob Forest, alongside technology-driven initiatives like bob SAMVAD, reflects a dual strategy that combines digital transformation with environmental commitments.

The use of artificial intelligence in banking has expanded rapidly in recent years, covering areas such as fraud detection, customer service chatbots and risk assessment. However, real-time multilingual communication inside physical branches remains relatively underdeveloped, particularly at scale.

By integrating speech recognition, translation and text-to-speech capabilities into a single platform, Bank of Baroda is attempting to bring digital convenience into in-person banking environments. The bank said the system has been designed to maintain natural fluency in conversations while ensuring accuracy in financial queries, where misinterpretation can have direct consequences.

The effectiveness of the platform will depend on its performance under real-world conditions, including background noise, regional accents and complex financial terminology. The bank did not disclose performance metrics or independent validation of the system’s accuracy, which could not be independently verified from a second source.

Still, the initial rollout across five states will serve as a test case for broader adoption. If successful, the model could influence similar deployments across other public and private sector banks seeking to improve accessibility in a multilingual country.

For customers, the shift could mean fewer misunderstandings at the counter. For staff, it may reduce the need to rely on informal translation or multilingual colleagues. And for the banking system, it signals a push toward embedding artificial intelligence into everyday operations, not just digital interfaces but physical branches as well.