Future Tech Banker

Future Tech Banker is hosted by Alec Crawford, CEO of Verapath and Eric Cook. Together, they bring deep experience in AI, banking, digital strategy, risk, business development, and industry leadership. The podcast explores the trends, technologies, and ideas shaping the future of community banking, with conversations focused on innovation, growth, leadership, customer experience, and the future of the industry. This podcast is sponsored by Verapath (www.verapath.com) and WSI (www.poweredbywsi.com).This episode's guest is Dara Tarkowski, Principal at Much Shelist and Chair of the firm's Tech Innovation, Data & Financial Regulation practice. Dara has practiced law for nearly 20 years as a litigator and regulatory advisor. She works with banks, fintechs and data-driven companies where law, technology and highly regulated industries meet. American Banker named her one of the "Most Influential Women in Fintech." She is also on the faculty of the Graduate School of Banking's Digital Banking Executive Program.Top 5 Takeaways:The AI guidance gap: In April 2026, the Fed, OCC and FDIC replaced the long-standing SR 11-7 model risk guidance. The new guidance explicitly excludes generative and agentic AI, which is where banks most need direction. Until that changes, regulators fall back on a UDAP lens (unfair, deceptive or abusive practices), and FINRA's 2026 report offers the clearest framework for AI agents.Waiting on Washington: The EU has a comprehensive AI Act, and the U.S. has executive orders. States like Colorado are trying to fill the gap with rules that focus mostly on consumer protection and disclosure.The laws you already follow still apply: Fair lending and ECOA require banks to explain credit decisions no matter how those decisions are made. That legal requirement is what really drives explainability and "human in the loop," not any AI-specific rule.Stop token maxing: Using AI everywhere isn't a strategy. Treat AI spend like hiring a new employee: define the value, benchmark it, and reassess at every contract renewal and model change.Prepare for examiners: Document your AI wins, and also the pilots you shut down. Bring someone to your exam who can explain your AI in plain language. Make sure each use case fits your mission and values, including the concerns of a younger generation that is skeptical of AI.References:Dara Tarkowski on LinkedInDara Tarkowski, Much ShelistRevised Interagency Model Risk Management Guidance (SR 26-2), April 17, 2026FINRA 2026 Regulatory Oversight Report: GenAI and AI AgentsEU Artificial Intelligence Act (Regulation 2024/1689)Colorado Repeals and Replaces Its AI Act (SB 26-189)GSB Digital Banking Executive ProgramCopyright (c) 2026 Artificial Intelligence Risk, Inc.

Future Tech Banker is hosted by Alec Crawford, and Eric Cook. Together, they bring deep experience in AI, banking, digital strategy, risk, business development, and industry leadership. The podcast explores the trends, technologies, and ideas shaping the future of community banking, with conversations focused on innovation, growth, leadership, customer experience, and the future of the industry. This podcast is sponsored by Verapath (www.verapath.com) and WSI (www.poweredbywsi.com).This episode's guest is JP Nichols of Alloy Labs, a self-described "recovering banker" who spent 20 years growing a bank before shifting to the intersection of innovation, strategy, and leadership. JP leads the Alloy Labs Institute, the research, insights, and advisory arm of Alloy Labs, which also runs a bank consortium and a fintech venture fund. He is a frequent speaker and educator on fintech and banking strategy, including at the Graduate School of Banking's Digital Banking Executive Program (exact title/role to confirm).Top 5 Takeaways:Reframe the ROI conversation: focus on lowering the investment and the cost of being wrong through fast, cheap experiments, rather than inflating the projected return.Watch the three 2026 signals: programmable money/stablecoins, agentic AI, and embedded finance — decide for each whether your bank is playing offense or defense.Prioritize with "extend, bend, transcend": allocate limited resources between defending the current business, adjacent moves, and fundamentally different future options.Fix the product management gap: banks are strong at project management but weak at product management; applying Clayton Christensen's Jobs to Be Done theory helps close it.Specialize to compete: community banks win today by serving a specific type of customer well rather than trying to be all things to all people.Links / resources mentioned:Alloy Labs — the alliance, venture fund, and the Alloy Labs InstituteAlloy Labs' Executive Briefings, including "Strategic Planning for This Moment"Digital Banking Executive Program, Graduate School of Banking (Madison) — formerly the Digital Banking SchoolJobs to Be Done theory, Christensen InstituteToast and Shopify, cited as examples of embedded finance

Future Tech Banker is hosted by Alec Crawford, and Eric Cook. Together, they bring deep experience in AI, banking, digital strategy, risk, business development, and industry leadership. The podcast explores the trends, technologies, and ideas shaping the future of community banking, with conversations focused on innovation, growth, leadership, customer experience, and the future of the industry. This podcast is sponsored by Verapath (www.verapath.com) and WSI.Wendell Bontrager, CEO and co-founder of Sonata Bank, joins us to discuss what it takes to build a community bank for the future. We explore Sonata’s unique franchise-banking strategy, its growing use of AI and automation, and why Wendell believes innovation has to be paired with strong risk management. He also shares how community banks can use technology, partnerships, and specialization to compete in an increasingly frictionless financial world.Building an AI Culture: Wendell describes Sonata’s approach to AI as a cultural transformation rather than simply a technology rollout. The bank is experimenting with enterprise AI, internal LLMs, agentic AI, and workflow automation while building organizational knowledge along the way.Innovation With Guardrails: AI adoption needs to move alongside security, governance, and risk management. Wendell emphasizes CEO ownership, employee education, controlled experimentation, and safeguards around sensitive customer information before AI is broadly deployed.Finding a Niche to Compete: Rather than trying to compete with every bank on traditional products, Sonata has developed deep expertise serving franchise businesses, particularly multi-unit operators. That specialization allows a small community bank to build relationships and compete far beyond its Nashville market.Partnering With Fintechs: Wendell sees fintechs as potential partners rather than simply competitors. Through sponsor banking and other partnerships, Sonata aims to become the banking infrastructure behind innovative financial products while expanding the markets it can serve.The Community Bank of the Future: Wendell expects banking to become far more automated, AI-driven, specialized, and frictionless over the next three to five years. His advice to community banks is to identify a lane where they can excel and use technology and relationships to create new opportunities.www.verapath.comwww.poweredbywsi.comCopyright (c) 2026 Artificial Intelligence Risk, Inc. All rights reserved.

Future Tech Banker is hosted by Alec Crawford, Eric Cook, and Jack Hubbard. Together, they bring deep experience in banking, digital strategy, risk, business development, and industry leadership. The podcast explores the trends, technologies, and ideas shaping the future of community banking, with conversations focused on innovation, growth, leadership, customer experience, and the future of the industry. This podcast is sponsored by Verapath (www.verapath.com), WSI, and Saint Meyer & Hubbard.Marlene Duhart, Chief Information Security Officer at Southern Bancorp (soon to become Uplift Bank), joined Future Tech Banker to discuss how community banks can responsibly embrace AI while staying true to their mission. Drawing on experience at Oracle, Visa, Zions Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, and now Southern Bancorp, she explains how AI is transforming banking—not just as a technology initiative, but as a cultural shift that empowers employees, improves decision-making, and strengthens customer service. The conversation explores AI governance, core banking conversions, productivity gains, data democratization, cybersecurity, and how mission-driven financial institutions can use innovation to better serve underserved communities.Top 5 themes from the episodeAI is a cultural transformation, not just a technology project. Successful adoption requires leadership support, employee training, AI champions across the organization, and governance that encourages responsible experimentation rather than fear.Banking has always been a data business, and AI unlocks that data. Conversational AI enables employees across departments to access insights without needing technical expertise, allowing better questions, faster analysis, and more informed decisions.AI delivers measurable operational efficiency. From comparing corporate policies during a bank merger to accelerating core conversion tasks and automating routine work, AI significantly reduces manual effort while improving consistency and accuracy.Mission-driven banks can use AI to expand financial inclusion. AI supports multilingual services, financial education, and improved customer engagement, helping community development financial institutions (CDFIs) better serve underserved individuals and small businesses.Strong governance and trusted partnerships are essential. Banks should establish AI policies, measure return on investment, implement appropriate security controls, and work with partners who understand both AI technology and the unique regulatory and operational needs of banking.LinksUplift Bank — https://uplift.bankGraduate School of Banking — https://www.gsb.org.register.bank — https://www.register.bankU.S. Treasury Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund — https://www.cdfifund.gov

Future Tech Banker is hosted by Alec Crawford, Eric Cook, and Jack Hubbard. Together, they bring deep experience in banking, digital strategy, risk, business development, and industry leadership. The podcast explores the trends, technologies, and ideas shaping the future of community banking, with conversations focused on innovation, growth, leadership, customer experience, and the future of the industry. This podcast is sponsored by Verapath (www.verapath.com), WSI, and Saint Meyer & Hubbard.This episode of Future Tech Banker features DJ Seeterlin, Chief Innovation & Strategy Officer at Chesapeake Bank, in a practical discussion about how community banks can successfully adopt AI without losing their human-centered culture. Rather than treating AI as a cost-cutting tool, Seeterlin explains how Chesapeake is using it to amplify employees, improve customer service, strengthen payments, and drive growth. The conversation also explores AI governance, innovation leadership, payment modernization, and why curiosity—not technology—is the key differentiator for community banks.Top 5 TakeawaysAI should amplify employees, not replace them. Chesapeake Bank's strategy is built around using AI to make employees more effective, giving them better information and more time to serve customers rather than reducing headcount.Innovation begins with leadership and culture—not technology. Before deploying AI tools, Chesapeake trained its executive team, created AI champions across the organization, and established a culture where experimentation and learning are encouraged. Successful AI adoption is as much about people as software.Governance should enable innovation, not block it. Seeterlin argues that risk and compliance teams should ask, "How can we do this safely?" instead of simply saying no. Banks that balance governance with growth will move faster and achieve better outcomes.Payments are ripe for AI-driven modernization. Rather than focusing on making transactions faster, Chesapeake uses AI to improve risk management, underwriting, customer insight, and business payment workflows. The bank is also helping businesses move away from paper checks toward integrated digital payment experiences.Curiosity is the most valuable AI skill. Whether you're an intern or a CEO, the best way to begin with AI is to experiment, share what you learn, and keep asking questions. Organizations build momentum when employees openly discuss how AI helps them solve real business problems.ReferencesAlloy Labs Alliance — https://alloylabs.comRebolt Financial Technologies — https://reboltft.comIdentifee — https://identifee.comMarketing AI Institute (MAICON) — https://www.marketingaiinstitute.comJack Henry — https://www.jackhenry.com