AI, Risk & the Future of Community Banking | Roger Beverage

In this episode of The Relevance Advantage, host Roger Beverage explores how artificial intelligence is reshaping the future of community banking—from efficiency and customer engagement to profitability and long-term valuation.AI is no longer a distant concept; it’s already being used to automate repetitive tasks, accelerate loan underwriting, improve compliance, and deliver 24/7 customer support. But with innovation comes disruption. Fintech challengers like Venmo, Chime, PayPal, and Stripe are leveraging AI to compete directly with community financial institutions—forcing banks to rethink how they stay relevant.Joining the conversation is Stephen Curry of Endurance Advisory Partners, who breaks down Deloitte’s findings on the shift from chatbots to agentic AI—systems that don’t just respond, but act. With failure rates in AI implementation still high, the discussion dives into a critical issue: governance, risk, and whether traditional banking systems are built for this new era.Together, they explore a key tension in the industry: should banks simply adopt AI tools, or fundamentally redesign how they operate around them?This is a grounded, forward-looking conversation about strategy, survival, and what it really takes for community banks to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving financial landscape.