Fasanara Capital has appointed former Man Group executive James Hylands to lead a newly established artificial intelligence lab as the alternative investment firm looks to embed AI across its investment and operational infrastructure.

Hylands joins Fasanara as head of artificial intelligence after leading generative AI strategy and delivery for Man Group’s discretionary division. He will oversee the Fasanara AI Lab, which is tasked with developing and deploying AI systems across the firm’s proprietary technology platform.

The initiative is intended to apply AI across areas including investment decision-making, portfolio management, credit underwriting, lending operations, risk management and enterprise productivity.

Fasanara said the lab will leverage its alternative credit datasets and global data infrastructure to develop proprietary AI capabilities. The firm also plans to work with AI companies, universities and technology partners to assess emerging models and integrate new technologies into its investment platform.

Hylands will lead a multidisciplinary team developing AI applications for credit underwriting, trading and portfolio optimisation, investment research, market intelligence, risk analytics and operational efficiency.

The lab will also explore AI agents and proprietary systems trained on Fasanara’s data ecosystem, with the firm targeting applications across its multi-asset and multi-manager platform.

The appointment marks the latest step in Fasanara’s technology-led strategy, which the firm said has involved more than a decade of investment in lending infrastructure, fintech integrations and data-driven investment processes.

Fasanara said it intends to use the AI Lab to strengthen its capabilities across private credit, digital assets and systematic investing as artificial intelligence increasingly reshapes financial markets.