Main Street AI

What comes after SaaS in finance? Pete Keenan, VP of Finance at 645 Ventures, discusses the rise of agentic AI and what it means for high-stakes workflows in venture capital and beyond. From portfolio reporting to fund modeling, Pete shares where AI agents can deliver leverage today, why governance and explainability are non-negotiable, and how VCs can help their portfolio companies adopt AI, not...

How are major banks embracing fintech with purpose? Malcolm Jussawalla, fintech leader and innovation strategist at TD Bank, joins Ankur Patel to share how he helps bridge the gap between startups and one of North America’s largest financial institutions. From de-risking innovation to building lasting partnerships, Malcolm offers a front-row look at making fintech work inside the enterprise.

What happens when a founder-turned-investor takes on AI?Colin Wallace, Managing Director at Lobby Capital and former Head of Innovation at Grubhub, joins Ankur Patel to explore the messy middle between product, trust, and experimentation. From investing in AI-first startups to building companies at the edge of automation, Colin shares how he evaluates founders and why thoughtful constraint often b...

How does a credit union compete with big banks - without big budgets? Chris Ferguson, VP of Consumer Lending at Forum Credit Union, joins Ankur Patel to share how his team is using Multimodal's AI to automate routine tasks, reduce errors, and scale auto lending without growing headcount. From trust-building to culture change, this episode explores what it really takes to bring AI into a highly...

What’s really holding back AI in finance? Former Superintendent of Financial Services for the State of New York, Maria Vullo, joins Ankur Patel to unpack compliance risks, regulatory blind spots, and why explainability, not just capability, is key to enterprise AI adoption. Tune in for a practical, unfiltered look at how AI and regulation collide in the real world.

What do banks and insurers really want from AI? Luke Giancarlo, Director of the FinTech Innovation Lab, joins Ankur Patel to break down what’s working, what’s hype, and how startups can actually land deals with enterprise. From agentic AI to blockchain’s return, this episode unpacks the trends shaping financial innovation behind closed doors.

Austin Moss - entrepreneur, venture investor, and operator of seven companies- explores how founders can stand out in today’s noisy AI startup landscape. From vertical focus to scalable intelligence, we dig into due diligence, go-to-market moats, and why capital-efficient companies are rising fast. A must-watch for founders and investors navigating AI’s next wave

Christopher McDaniel, President of the Institutes Catastrophe Resiliency Council, joins Ankur Patel to unpack what it really takes to modernize the complex, risk-averse insurance industry. From climate risk to data silos, they explore how shared infrastructure, cross-industry collaboration, and regulatory engagement are redefining resilience in insurance. This conversation mentions, but goes beyon...

How do you get real business value from AI, without ripping out your legacy systems? Jimmy Iliohan, GM at LINKITSYSTEMS, shares practical insights from insurance, logistics, and manufacturing. From design blueprints to POC pitfalls, this episode is full of hard-won lessons on driving real outcomes with AI.

What does it take to scale AI inside massive enterprises? Sam Nasser, investor at ADP Ventures, shares how startups can partner with ADP, the real challenges in enterprise adoption, and what CVCs look for beyond financial returns. A must-watch for founders aiming to sell into the enterprise.

Bhavesh Dayalji, Chief AI Officer at S&P Global and CEO of Kensho, joins Ankur to explore the future of agentic AI. From AI-ready data to Spark Assist and multi-agent systems, this episode explores how enterprises are adopting AI at scale with trust, actionability, and impact at the core.

David Mocklow, Head of Strategy & Transformation at MSIG, joins Ankur to discuss why claims modernization isn’t optional anymore. From aging adjusters to rising litigation tech, the pressure is on. They cover why AI matters, why TPAs might outpace carriers, and how better claims data could reshape underwriting in real time.

Multimodal was selected as 1 of 15 startups globally for the Google Cloud AI Accelerator. In this episode, Ankur Patel, the founder and CEO, and Andrew McKishnie, VP of Engineering, reflect on what this means for Multimodal, what it was like attending Google Cloud Next, and how this experience will help Multimodal build agentic AI for finance and insurance.

Lenders missed millions during the last refi boom. If you don’t want to repeat history, this episode is for you. Ankur Patel and Matt Chojnacki, Account Executive at Multimodal, discuss how agentic AI can help ops teams handle more volume with fewer bottlenecks. From document parsing to decisioning, learn how to future-proof your workflows before the next wave hits.

Enterprises are finally moving past AI pilot purgatory — and Suzanne Rabicoff, Chief of Field at Multimodal, explains why. In this episode, she shares how agentic AI is helping companies scale smarter and faster. From underwriting to customer experience, AI agents are transforming workflows by embedding knowledge, boosting productivity, and freeing teams from repetitive tasks. This is more than au...

Mora Freire, product manager and customer success lead at Multimodal, and Ankur Patel discuss AgentFlow, a platform designed to simplify agentic AI integration in financial services. They talk about why they built AgentFlow, how it’s different from anything else on the market, and how it works under the hood. Key takeaways include the need for tech adaptation and seamless collaboration between AI...

Jen Peachman discusses the challenges mortgage lenders face, including market cycles and rising customer expectations. She explains how AI and automation enhance efficiency, accuracy, and cost-effectiveness. Jen also emphasizes how leveraging AI allows lenders to streamline operations, enabling staff to focus on clients and navigate industry shifts more effectively.

David Aaronson explores the key aspects of data readiness and governance in the age of generative AI and evolving data management. The discussion covers preparing data for AI, navigating the AI arms race, and adapting to changing data practices. It also highlights the risks of both adopting new technologies and staying stagnant, emphasizing the need for organizations to take a proactive approach t...

Bjorn Austraat explores the evolving role of AI in enterprises, focusing on the challenges and opportunities of generative AI.The discussion covers data quality, effective vendor management, and tips on implementing AI in enterprises - for example, by working in 8-week cycles. It also highlights the importance of upskilling talent and the impact of agentic AI, emphasizing the need for enterprises...

Jake Jones, Second VP and Actuary at Securian, discusses how AI is transforming life insurance underwriting. He shares insights on enhancing risk assessment and improving customer experiences. Jones addresses the challenges of integrating new technologies while balancing innovation with human expertise. The conversation explores the future of underwriting, emphasizing personalization and faster qu...

Mario DiCaro dives into the complexities of capital modeling in the insurance industry and the transformative role of AI, particularly generative AI. Joined by Ankur Patel, they discuss how AI is reshaping workflows, organizational structures, and risk management. The conversation explores the challenges and opportunities of AI-generated content, the risks associated with AI in capital modeling, a...

Mike Downing, CTO of WPA Health Insurance, discusses AI integration in health insurance, highlighting the industry's cautious approach. AI is primarily used in back-office operations to boost productivity while minimizing direct customer impact. He covers successes, challenges, compliance, and ethical concerns, emphasizing the need for organizations to experiment and adapt to AI’s rapid evolut...

Venture investors Collin Bhojwani and Taylor Sieverling from Allianz Life Ventures discuss corporate VC vs. traditional VC, investment strategies, and post-investment support. They explore challenges in corporate VC, startup evaluation criteria, and the rise of generative AI. We also cover balancing financial returns with strategic value and dive into the build vs. partner debate for AI solutions.

Shawn Dunn, VP of Data and Analytics at Washington State Employee Credit Union, discusses the unique value of credit unions compared to traditional banks. He discusses the challenges and strategies in adopting technology and AI while maintaining a human-centric approach to financial services. The conversation explores how AI enhances member experiences, the importance of data management, and the n...

Tonjia Coverdale, Chief Strategy Officer at Associated Bank, shares her experience in technology and explores the transformative role of AI in banking and insurance. She discusses the challenges of AI adoption, the significance of data governance, and the importance of collaboration between business and IT. Tonjia also highlights the need to invest in data, enhance personalization, and address pri...