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When it comes to technology-first businesses, Michael Pizzi, executive vice president and global head of technology and operations at Morgan Stanley, has a track record as a builder.
As CEO of E-Trade at the time of its
That mindset has helped drive a sweeping expansion of AI across the firm. Morgan Stanley deploys generative AI tools across hundreds of use cases, with roughly 98% of 80,000 employees now having access to at least one of these programs, the firm said.
"We were very early as a company in looking at the possibilities of what could be done with AI," Pizzi said.
One thing Pizzi is particularly proud of over the past year has been the evolution of DevGen.AI, an internally developed platform designed to modernize legacy software, built on OpenAI's GPT models. The tool analyzes complex, and sometimes decades-old, codebases and decomposes them into schematic maps that engineers can use to rebuild applications in modern coding languages. More recently, newer AI models have enabled the platform to automate portions of the translation process itself.
As of February 2026, Morgan Stanley had modernized roughly 16 million lines of code using the platform, significantly accelerating efforts to refresh systems that support trading, wealth management, and client-facing digital platforms.
Pizzi oversees a technology organization of about 16,000 software developers. As a workforce, he believes AI will expand their output rather than shrink it. Part of that thinking has meant emphasising building a culture where innovation can come from anywhere inside the bank.
Through initiatives such as Morgan Stanley's patent accelerator program and technology sandbox environments, engineers and other employees are encouraged to experiment with new tools and develop ideas that can ultimately become production systems or patented technologies.
The sandbox allows teams to safely test emerging technologies, including new AI models and open-source tools, before they are introduced into live systems. More than 550 technologists now hold patents through the program. For Pizzi, creating those pathways is a key part of his role.
"We're going to enter a world where we fundamentally develop more software," he said.
Faster development cycles mean more projects can move forward. "There are a lot of important projects that just didn't quite clear the bar," Pizzi said. With AI speeding development, "the demand is there."
