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).

Meet our guest

Cameron Ohlendorf is the 10th president of First Community Bank and Trust, a 110-year-old, $200 million community bank 35 miles south of Chicago. He started at the bank as an intern, became its first commercial credit analyst, and over 15 years helped turn it from a 1–4 family lender into a small-business lender. He's a fellow Graduate School of Banking graduate and a proud "SOB" (son of a banker): his father, Greg, works alongside him at the bank. Cameron joins co-hosts Eric Cook and Alec Crawford to talk about how a two-branch bank uses 26–27 fintech partners and AI to compete in the Chicago market.

Top 5 takeaways

1. Size isn't an excuse not to innovate. A two-branch bank with about 30 employees competes with regional and national banks by bringing in fintech partners, while keeping the local relationships customers value.
2. Fix the process before you add the technology. Cameron targets paper first and breaks each process into steps before adding technology. Commercial loan closings went from 5 hours to 5 minutes, and wire approvals now go straight to whoever can approve them. COVID already proved digital works, so there's no going backward.
3. Using AI isn't enough: you need AI-specific cybersecurity. AI tools like Claude help with work such as strategic-planning research, but attackers use the same technology. Cameron warns of very convincing phishing emails and synthetic identity fraud. Banks need defenses built for AI-driven threats, starting with stronger identity verification.
4. ROI isn't only cost savings. A basis point of income and a basis point of saved expense count the same. Often the return is the same staff covering more work and taking risk off the table, such as reviewing 100% of checks instead of a sample.
5. Vet fintechs hard, and don't let the core hold you back. Third-party risk management is the minimum bar, and the ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator is where he finds and vets partners. The core is now the accounting record, and about half his fintechs never touch it.

Links mentioned

• First Community Bank and Trust: https://www.firstcbt.bank
• Cameron named 10th president: https://www.firstcbt.bank/blog/post/first-community-bank-and-trust-announces-its-10th-president
• ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator: https://icba.org/accelerator
• Socratics (check fraud), ICBA article: https://icba.org/w/level-up-fraud-mitigation-for-community-banks
• Quilo (personal loans), via First Community: https://firstcbt.bank/personal-banking/personal-loans
• Micronotes, ICBA Solutions listing: https://solutions.icba.org/11842/Micronotes
• Verapath: https://www.verapath.com
• WSI: https://www.poweredbywsi.com
• Eric Cook: https://wsiworld.com/eric-cook
• Alec's post "Your Tech Budget as a Strategic Weapon": https://stayblog.substack.com/p/your-tech-budget-as-strategic-weapon

© 2026 AI Risk. All rights reserved.

I wrote the copyright as "AI Risk." If the legal name is different, like "AI Risk, Inc.," tell me and I'll change it. Cameron's LinkedIn is still a placeholder.

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:

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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 LinkedIn
• Dara Tarkowski, Much Shelist
• Revised Interagency Model Risk Management Guidance (SR 26-2), April 17, 2026
• FINRA 2026 Regulatory Oversight Report: GenAI and AI Agents
• EU Artificial Intelligence Act (Regulation 2024/1689)
• Colorado Repeals and Replaces Its AI Act (SB 26-189)
• GSB Digital Banking Executive Program

Copyright (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:

1. 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.
2. Watch the three 2026 signals: programmable money/stablecoins, agentic AI, and embedded finance — decide for each whether your bank is playing offense or defense.
3. Prioritize with "extend, bend, transcend": allocate limited resources between defending the current business, adjacent moves, and fundamentally different future options.
4. 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.
5. 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 Institute
• Alloy Labs' Executive Briefings, including "Strategic Planning for This Moment"
• Digital Banking Executive Program, Graduate School of Banking (Madison) — formerly the Digital Banking School
• Jobs to Be Done theory, Christensen Institute
• Toast 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.com

www.poweredbywsi.com

Copyright (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 episode

1. AI 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.

Links

Uplift Bank — https://uplift.bank

Graduate School of Banking — https://www.gsb.org

.register.bank — https://www.register.bank

U.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.

• AI 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.

References

• Alloy Labs Alliance — https://alloylabs.com
• Rebolt Financial Technologies — https://reboltft.com
• Identifee — https://identifee.com
• Marketing AI Institute (MAICON) — https://www.marketingaiinstitute.com
• Jack Henry — https://www.jackhenry.com

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.

In this episode, Mike Kaput, Chief Content Officer at SmarterX and the Marketing AI Institute, joins Future Tech Banker to discuss why AI is no longer just another technology trend but a fundamental shift in how banks will operate and compete. The conversation explores practical strategies for bank leaders to begin their AI journey, how to measure ROI, why change management matters more than technology, and why the rise of AI agents will redefine the future workforce. Throughout the discussion, Mike emphasizes that the banks that start learning today—even through small experiments—will be best positioned to thrive as AI transforms every aspect of financial services.

• AI won't replace bankers—but bankers who use AI will replace those who don't. Bank leaders should encourage every employee to develop AI skills now because AI literacy is quickly becoming as important as digital literacy.
• Leadership and culture—not technology—determine AI success. Buying Copilot or another AI platform is only the first step; executive sponsorship, employee training, and organizational buy-in ultimately determine whether AI delivers meaningful business value.
• Start small and prove ROI before scaling. Banks should focus on specific use cases like loan documentation, compliance, marketing, or customer communications where time savings and productivity gains can be measured and expanded over time.
• AI agents will become digital coworkers throughout the bank. Rather than simply answering questions, AI agents will increasingly perform work autonomously, requiring managers to supervise teams of both human employees and AI assistants.
• Don't wait for perfect governance or perfect technology. The banks gaining a competitive advantage are already experimenting with AI in low-risk areas, building institutional knowledge that will compound as the technology rapidly advances.

Here are five useful resources mentioned during the episode for bankers who want to learn more about AI:

• SmarterX – AI transformation consulting, executive education, and enterprise AI adoption: https://www.smarterx.ai
• Marketing AI Institute – AI research, articles, courses, and the annual MAICON conference: https://www.marketingaiinstitute.com
• MAICON (Marketing AI Conference) – One of the leading AI conferences for business leaders and marketers: https://www.maicon.ai

Copyright (c) 2026 by Artificial Intelligence Risk, Inc., DBA Verapath

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.

Bill Fink, Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial Banking at Provident Bank, shares a pragmatic banker's perspective on the economy, artificial intelligence, and the future of relationship banking. Drawing on more than 25 years of experience in commercial banking, Bill explains why disciplined strategy, thoughtful AI adoption, and strong customer relationships will separate winning banks from the rest. The conversation explores economic uncertainty, interest rates, AI governance, enterprise AI use cases, and why the most successful bankers will use AI to become more productive—not less personal.

Top 5 Takeaways

• Bankers who embrace AI will outperform those who don't. AI won't replace relationship bankers—it will make them more valuable by automating administrative work so they can spend more time advising clients, building trust, and growing relationships.
• Enterprise AI will deliver the biggest ROI. Beyond productivity tools like Copilot, the greatest value will come from transforming core banking functions such as loan underwriting, covenant monitoring, treasury management, customer service, compliance, and fraud detection.
• AI should follow strategy—not hype. Banks need a clear roadmap with measurable business outcomes before deploying AI, prioritizing high-volume, repetitive processes where automation improves efficiency and reduces operational risk.
• Governance and training are critical for success. Effective AI adoption requires executive oversight, employee education, strong security controls, and clear policies to ensure AI is used safely, responsibly, and effectively.
• Economic uncertainty rewards disciplined execution. Amid volatility in interest rates, inflation, and global markets, banks that stay focused on long-term strategy while investing thoughtfully in technology will be best positioned for growth.

Resources

• Provident Bank – https://www.provident.bank
• Wharton Executive Education – https://executiveeducation.wharton.upenn.edu
• Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) – https://fred.stlouisfed.org

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.

In this episode of Future Tech Banker, Alec Crawford and Eric Cook sit down with AI strategist and educator Angie Carel, one of the leading voices helping organizations move beyond AI experimentation into practical business adoption. Angie shares how she uses AI agents to automate hours of work every day, why AI literacy is becoming an essential business skill, and how financial institutions can embrace AI safely while preserving trust. The conversation also explores the growing risks of deepfakes, the importance of governance, and why human relationships will become even more valuable as AI becomes ubiquitous.

• AI agents are becoming every employee's digital assistant, automating routine tasks and giving bankers more time to focus on customers, lending, and strategic decisions.
• AI governance and security must be built in from the beginning, with banks using private AI environments and strong controls to protect customer data and reduce operational risk.
• AI literacy is now a competitive advantage, and organizations that encourage employees to experiment with AI today will outperform those waiting for the technology to mature.
• Trust will become a bank's greatest differentiator, as deepfakes and AI-generated fraud make authentic human relationships and verification more important than ever.
• The best way to prepare for enterprise AI is to start using it personally, building confidence and practical skills before deploying AI in regulated banking environments.

Sources

• Angie Carel (LinkedIn): https://www.linkedin.com/in/angiecarel/
• Anthropic: https://www.anthropic.com
• Lovable: https://lovable.dev
• Google AI Studio: https://aistudio.google.com
• CommunityBanking.ai: https://communitybanking.ai
• WSI: https://www.poweredbywsi.com/
• Verapath: https://www.verapath.com

Copyright (c) 2026 by Artificial Intelligence Risk, Inc DBA Verapath

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.

In this episode of Future Tech Banker, Jack Hubbard (and belatedly Eric Cook) sit down with Chris Nichols, President of Institutional Banking at SouthState Bank, joined by marketing and AI expert Eric Cook, to explore how artificial intelligence is reshaping banking. The conversation moves beyond basic AI use cases and examines what separates banks that will thrive from those that may struggle to survive in the next few years. Chris argues that AI is not simply a productivity tool—it is a strategic imperative that will fundamentally change customer relationships, employee effectiveness, marketing, sales, treasury management, and banking operations. The discussion highlights how leading banks are moving from simple chatbots and copilots toward enterprise-wide AI strategies focused on creating better customer experiences, empowering employees, and freeing bankers to spend more time doing what humans do best: building trust and relationships.

1. Your AI strategy should be to become more human.

The winning banks will not use AI to replace human relationships—they will use AI to eliminate administrative work, automate routine tasks, and free bankers to spend more time with customers. As Chris Nichols put it, every bank should be asking: How can we use AI to become more authentically human where it matters most?

2. If your employees are not using AI today, your bank may not be around in three years.

Chris warned that the divide between banks that embrace AI and those that don't will become obvious very quickly. Organizations that prevent employees from experimenting with AI risk falling dramatically behind competitors that are actively training and enabling their teams.

3. The biggest opportunities are beyond the basics.

Many organizations are still focused on meeting summaries, email drafting, and simple productivity gains. The next wave of value comes from AI-powered customer intelligence, treasury management, credit underwriting, onboarding, sales enablement, marketing personalization, fraud detection, and enterprise-wide process redesign.

4. AI creates confidence, not just efficiency.

One of the most overlooked benefits is employee confidence. AI helps bankers prepare for customer conversations, role-play sales scenarios, gather insights, and understand customer needs. Better-informed employees are more confident employees, which leads to better customer outcomes.

5. Banks must balance governance with innovation.

Regulators increasingly expect banks to have documented AI governance, training, policies, and oversight. However, the risk of doing nothing may now be as significant as the risk of adopting AI. Successful institutions will thoughtfully manage AI risk while aggressively pursuing AI-driven opportunities.

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/cknichols/
• https://southstatecorrespondent.com/banking-insights/
• https://southstatecorrespondent.com/podcast/chris-nichols-on-the-future-of-payments/
• https://southstatecorrespondent.com/podcast/the-top-12-winning-strategies-for-community-banks-in-2025-with-chris-nichols-and-ed-kofman/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackrants/
• https://smandh.com/staff/jack-hubbard/
• https://smandh.com/
• https://southstatecorrespondent.com/podcast/helping-your-lenders-succeed-with-jack-hubbard/
• https://www.poweredbywsi.com
• https://www.verapath.com