Moody’s (MCO) Bernstein 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference summary

AI strategy and integration

• Assembled a vast content estate focused on risk, viewing AI as a major opportunity to leverage this data.

• Evolving from standalone AI tools to embedding intelligence in third-party platforms like Microsoft Teams and Copilot.

• Announced integration with Microsoft, enabling direct access to content via Teams and Copilot, using a bring-your-own-license model.

• Early customer engagement and pilots underway, with new agreements and pricing models for AI-enabled access.

• Focused on driving embeddedness and usage at financial institutions, aiming for increased visibility and revenue as contracts are signed.

Data defensibility and proprietary assets

• Proprietary research, a unique default database, and credentialized credit models form the core data moat.

• Insurance catastrophe models are built from exclusive industry claims data, often with direct customer investment.

• Global company database curated from hundreds of providers, with unique contractual and IP rights, including derived ownership hierarchies valuable for compliance.

• Data value lies in derived and private information, not easily replicated by competitors.

Moody’s Analytics (MA) business outlook

• Consolidating credit research, economic, and structured finance content into a unified OneView platform with agent layer.

• Expanding AI-ready data offerings and embedding intelligence into client AI workflows, with strong pipeline and cross-sell opportunities.

• Insurance segment enhancing models and migrating clients to cloud, with new focus on casualty analytics.

• Loan origination software for smaller banks is fastest-growing, with agentic capabilities offered à la carte.