Digital Dump

Steven Batiste and Kate Pohl spoke with Jörg Reuter, Principal Solution Consultant, at Pegasystems, about Fraud and Cybercrime.

Jörg feels that what banks and corporates are doing to fight fraud and cybercrime is “acceptable” … but they could do more.

We discussed different aspects and challenges as well as supporting technologies. Crypto was reviewed as well. Jörg feels that the IoT is particularly worrisome given the behavior of consumers as well as business i.e., security features are available, but usually … ignored.

Is the data needed for monitoring and securing processes really available? Is better regulation a must? Why has Low-Code become the “key” for making the complex easy?

Tune in and find out more!

Kate Pohl and Steven Batiste interviewed Kenza Ait Si Abbou, Director Client Engineering DACH for IBM.  Kenza found her way to Artificial Intelligence and Engineering by growing up with a love of mathematics.

She stated that lack of technology is not the barrier to achievement, but instead, culture and a strong "fear of doing the wrong thing".  Information is power, which makes sharing data a very sensitive matter.

Kenza felt that the pandemic certainly helped to change "mindset" and forced everyone to digitize.  When asked if we should allow robots to take over cognitive jobs, Kenza was clear... "We cannot stop it, we cannot stop progress."

AI has given us better customer interaction and customer care.  Business process automation is more cost-effective and efficient in regard to predictive maintenance.

AI supports not only better but totally new experiences.

Do we have sufficient regulation?  What is next?

Tune in and find out!

Steven Batiste and Kate Pohl interviewed Markus Schulz, Deputy Global Head Financial Crime Compliance & Global Head FCC Change Management at ING Bank. Markus highlighted that whenever the good guys plug a hole, another is explored/created, making it even harder to slow the pace of Financial Crime. Markus emphasized that since we don't have unlimited budgets, it is important to start with the "simple things'' "Adding 3 more locks to the door doesn't work if the gatekeeper hands over the keys!".

He commented that massive investments are being made in Regtech and that the number of providers has grown exponentially.

Markus emphasized the need for "explainability", especially to the regulator.  Technology as a tool remains important, but you need clean, plentiful, and available data to make it useful. Technology alone is not the answer (especially when the question is not clearly defined)!  Markus sees banks becoming "financial institutions i.e. data companies with a balance sheet".  He advocates for the same rules for the same risks.

What do belly dancers and compliance have in common? Do we continue to underestimate the cultural environment? If we fail to plan... must we plan to fail?

Tune in and find out!

Kate Pohl and Steven Batiste welcomed Carsten Brzeski, Global Head of Macro Research and Chief Economist Eurozone at ING Bank, to the podcast.  Carsten explained his very interesting and rich background including how he “rolled” into economics. He was quite upbeat about the future but sees the 2021 themes as the same ones for 2022.

Carsten does not feel that Omicron will be a game changer. And although the pandemic has brought various effects and changes, we will get through this. Asia does, however, pose a risk to the economy with their zero covid strategy i.e. affecting global supply chains. But the order books e.g. in Europe are full to overflowing so as the supply chain issues become less critical later this year, we should see a real uptick. Government spending will increase, also to support the green transition. This will require significant investment.

Should you be worried about inflation and what are the 3 D’s? Is Artificial Intelligence the key technology today? What about the future of work… will a robot be defining my job in the future?

Tune in and find the answers to these questions and a lot more!

Artificial Intelligence will have a central role in our world going forward.

Please join Steven Batiste, TIS and Thomas Haida, Microsoft as they continue their conversation about AI moderated by Kate Pohl, and categorize it as "the glue that will be needed to hold everything together!"

Are we really going to replace humans with Avatars? And does that mean we can skip going to meetings in the future? (Only kidding... sort of.)  

Thomas feels that the perfection of voice recording will be duplicated by human images in the not so distant future. Is this an example of the Uncanny Valley? Will AI use cases challenge and easily pass the Turing test? Has Star Trek become reality in the 21 Century?

Please tune-in to find out what the experts are saying!

Steven Batiste and Kate Pohl spoke with Andre Bajorat beginning with the first steps in his "career", a word he finds much too formal. Andre sees himself as a "border crosser" bringing people and topics etc. together while maintaining his independence.

What are the game-changing technologies today? Andre sees the Internet and certainly the Cloud in this category. AI will be a facilitator of some monumental change in his opinion. For Andre, the New Normal is indeed contextual banking and embedded finance.  He feels that "banking and payments should be there - when and how I need them."

What does true cooperation between banks and fintechs look like? Is EPI a go or more wishful thinking? What are the most important factors for Andre when considering an early-stage investment in a young start-up?

Please tune in to find the answers to these questions and so much more!

Kate Pohl spoke with Miriam Wohlfarth on a variety of topics surrounding start-ups, fintechs, and banks. We also spent time discussing the technologies of today and tomorrow! Miriam is a great believer in embedded and contextual banking, "in the future, people will need products that support their lives and fit them better".

Miriam feels it is vital to use and further develop APIs for better access to data. For her, Artificial Intelligence will be the foundation for what fintechs develop in the future. What does Miriam Wohlfarth worry about, what keeps her up at night?

Does she think there are problems that cannot be solved? We loved Miriam's optimism and positive attitude as well as her motto - from her father -  "Enthusiasm is the principal [the foundation] for all possibilities".

Please tune in and listen to a very inspiring leader and get the answers to the above questions plus so much more!

Steven Batiste and Kate Pohl discuss the topic of Banking as a Service (BaaS).

Today, platforms want to integrate a range of financial products and services from payments to financing. It all began with cards - both debit and credit and today there is no end (of use cases) insight.

Non-banks e.g., fintechs, neo banks, or even incumbent banks... are looking for players with a banking license or banking products and services. Why? So that they can concentrate on building and maintaining their brand and the customer experience!

BaaS can be a bridge that drives value for platforms as well as end users.

How and when did this all begin? Does size matter?  Who are actually the providers, the actual players in BaaS? Please tune in and find the answers to these questions and a lot more!

Steven Batiste and Kate Pohl discuss the topic of the Metaverse (OR is it Multiverse....?) in order to really understand what these terms mean!

We also touch on the concepts of both Virtual and Mixed Reality that are key to understanding the Metaverse. Steven explains the origins of this new frontier and how it has developed over time. We look at Facebook, Microsoft, etc. that are developing and using the Metaverse in order to get a feel for use cases and future potential.

Is Facebook - or Meta as it is now called - investing billions in the technology? Is Microsoft really planning to turn us all into cartoon characters through avatars (or is this merely a joke or a gimmick)?

Will Steven Batiste become SpongeBob and Kate Pohl become Princess Leia? Please tune in and find the answers to these questions and a lot more

Steven Batiste and Kate Pohl explore the realm of deepfakes to better understand the topic itself as well the effects on society.

Steven explains exactly what a deepfake is as well as the technology behind it. We look at the connection to artificial intelligence and explore the power of GANs (generative adversarial networks). The adversarial relationship between the "decoder and the discriminator" turns out to be key. In other words, both work in a competitive fashion to continually improve the deepfake.

What are the use cases... both those used to do good as well as ... evil?  What are the key concerns around this technology? And can we make sure that it is used safely?

Please tune in and find the answers to these questions and a lot more.