Hey, fintech fam 💜
Coming to you from Chicago! Today I moderated a fireside at Brex Mode, Brex’s half-day summit bringing together some of the biggest names in finance.
It was titled The New Shape of Spend: Modern Finance in the Age of AI, with Legora’s Chief Financial Officer, David Eckstein, and we unpacked how AI is already changing the way finance leaders think about spending, forecasting, ROI, and even the role of the CFO itself.
More learnings from that conversation to come, but something David said onstage stuck with me: we’re in a 24-month period where finance is being rewritten by AI.
It reminded me exactly why I’m building FTW: SF around the thesis that fintech leaders should be leading the AI conversation.
Fintech has the data. Fintech already powers the global economy. The world runs on fintech.
So as AI rewrites how money moves, how financial decisions get made, and how businesses operate, why wouldn’t this be our conversation to lead?
Today’s newsletter shows you exactly why.
Let’s get into it. ✨
ON LEADERSHIP
Drew Glover Says Fintech Already Has Its Biggest AI Advantage: Data. But They Aren’t Using It to Their Advantage.
Golden Gate Bridge: you’ll always be iconic 🌉
Drew Glover, co-founder of Fiat Growth and my co-host for FTW: SF, sat down to record a Humans of Fintech podcast episode with me in the heart of San Francisco (literally the heart — just take a look at our backdrop!) a few weeks ago, and our conversation is something I want every fintech leader to hear.
His most important point: every serious fintech company that exists today is already an AI company.
The Proof is in the Data
Glover argues that because fintech companies have some of the richest, longest-running datasets on consumer behavior and risk, they are perfectly positioned to be major players in the AI revolution.
But many fintechs aren’t using this data to their advantage. For example, Glover’s been with the same bank for over a decade, so why does he still have to call the bank to apply for a mortgage and spend 6 hours on the phone verifying information they already know?
That gap between the data a financial institution already has and the experience it actually delivers may be one of fintech's biggest AI opportunities.
If fintechs get serious about their existing data, treat it like a core product, and build AI-native experiences around it, they don't necessarily need to compete with the frontier AI companies. Their advantage may be building the financial intelligence those companies can't easily replicate.
This raises another strategic question: what should fintechs build themselves, and where should they partner?
Fintechs are Asking: Do We Build Internally or Partner Up with AI Giants?
In fact, Grasshopper recently announced it became the first-ever bank added to Anthropic’s MCP directory. We can expect this to be the first of many AI and banking partnerships to come.
(Grasshopper is also partnering with us at FTW: SF. This recent news will undoubtedly come up during their session. Make sure you have your tickets!)
The Grasshopper move brings up a good question that Drew says a lot of “old guard” companies (think legacy banks and those with 100+ years of data) are considering right now:
Do I build AI features internally and try to compete with OpenAI, Anthropic, and the like? Or do I partner with them instead?
For companies that choose to build internally, Glover predicts an influx of startups that will enable that build over the next decade.
“Bank of America isn't going to have to say to themselves, ‘How do I go get 1000 AI engineers?” Glover said.
“They're going to say, ‘I'm going to partner with this B2B business that will enable me to build internally, so I can keep a fortress and a gate around the data that is the bedrock of my business.’”
Here Is What Fintech Founders Should Focus On Right Now
We are at a point in the AI timeline where even small fintechs can compete, but that doesn’t happen by releasing random AI features nobody asked for.
Glover says there are a few things fintechs should be focused on right now:
Getting Serious About Data: Ask yourself: what proprietary data do we have? What public data can we combine it with to create unique value? What dataset could we own that would be very hard for others to replicate?
Build AI-Native Features, Not Just Chatbot Skin: Think about the gaps in fintech right now. What AI features, internally or externally, can you build that might prevent customers of 10+ years from spending 6+ hours on the phone with the bank to apply for a mortgage?
If You’re Earlier Stage: Consider if you can be the infrastructure layer that enables industry incumbents to build their own AI without sharing raw data with LLMs. As Glover mentioned, this is about to be an area of opportunity for many startups.
But if every fintech is investing in AI-native features, what actually separates one from another?
Glover's answer is three things: data, distribution, and storytelling.
Product alone, he argues, doesn't carry the competitive weight it once did.
“I've seen people that have built stuff, and I'm like, dude, that's a hackathon idea,” Glover said. “You and I could just lock ourselves in a room for a weekend and build that with Claude.”
Which leads to the question he thinks founders should be asking:
What is your unfair advantage to get to your first $10 million in revenue in 18 months, not four years?
The data angle is simple: use the data you have at your disposal smartly.
Think about how you can build data-centric features that save customers time, money, energy, and brainpower.
Distribution Becomes The Moat
On storytelling and distribution, Glover said something I’ve been preaching to founders for years: we are moving away from marketing as a faceless brand and into a territory where founders are the new face. This has been a new normal for several years now.
“That's why we're seeing VCs on Instagram trying to build a personality,” Glover said.
“That's why we're seeing founders on LinkedIn and TikTok trying to build a personality because they're realizing it takes time to compound, but once it's there, it becomes one of your best growth marketing channels,” Glover said on the podcast.
Source: Bain and Company
Fintech and Big Tech Need to Get In the Same Room
This is also one of the questions Drew and I want to pressure-test at FTW: SF this fall.
What happens when you put the companies building AI, platforms, and massive consumer ecosystems in conversation with the fintech companies that understand money movement, risk, compliance, and financial data?
What happens when DoorDash meets Chime? Or Airbnb meets Stripe?
The biggest technology bets are being made in the Bay Area, and we're bringing fintech leaders from across the country into that conversation.
“There are going to be so many fascinating conversations that happen, and I think pairing [Big Tech companies] up with incredible fintech leaders will spur these discussions about the literal economies that they've built inside of their massive ecosystems,” Glover said.
That's the room we're building in San Francisco.
The biggest tech bets happen in the Bay Area, and we’re bringing New York finance into the fold.
“There are going to be so many fascinating conversations that happen, and I think pairing [Big Tech companies] up with incredible fintech leaders will spur these discussions about the literal economies that they've built inside of their massive ecosystems,” Glover said.
Grab your tickets to FTW:SF and join us September 29–October 1.
Now is the time to carve your moats.
I’m also looking to invite even more leaders from Big Tech companies based in San Francisco; we’ve already got a great crowd!
Know someone who should join you there? Reply to this email, and I might be able to pass along a discount code.
Fintech: The AI Conversation Is Ours to Lead
It all starts at FTW:SF.
San Francisco is the epicenter of the AI conversation. It is also where fintech's role in that conversation has been most consistently overlooked.
FTW: San Francisco is designed to close that gap — bringing together the operators, founders, executives, and investors building the infrastructure of the agentic economy into a curated, high-intent experience.
Three days. Three Summits. One vision.
I WANT IT, I GOT IT
✈️ Today's Travel: Chicago is always a fun place to be. Anton grew up in a suburb right outside of Chicago, and much of his family is still here — so we will get to spend time with them this week!
👕 Today's Quote: “What you don’t know is that that sweater is not just blue, it’s not turquoise, it’s not lapis, it’s actually cerulean.” May this iconic Miranda Priestly quote from Devil Wears Prada remind you that good taste is always in style.
🎬 Today's Watch: Alone on The History Channel. Definitely Survivor vibes but more intense. Check it out if you’re interested in shows like this! And speaking of DWP: reply to this email with your thoughts on the second one if you’ve seen it!
FINTUNES
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Thanks for spending time with me today!
Love,
Nicole 💜
