Is SaaS dead? A conversation With Elias Apel and Kevin Smith about AI, cloud and the future of finance

In the premiere episode of Finance in Flow, recorded live at Lucanet World 2025, host and CEO Elias Apel sits down with Kevin Smith, Lucanet’s Chief Technology Officer, for a wide-ranging conversation on the SaaS model, the future of finance, technology, and the CFO’s evolving role. Reflecting on the energy and momentum from the event in Berlin, Elias and Kevin discuss the accelerating pace of change in the finance world and the critical importance of real-time insights. A major theme of the episode is artificial intelligence—how it’s transforming both Lucanet’s platform and internal development processes, and what it means for customers beginning their AI journeys. Kevin shares Lucanet’s newly launched CFO Solution Platform and the vision for embedding AI directly into finance workflows and explains why the move to the cloud is foundational for enabling powerful, scalable, and trustworthy AI capabilities.About the guestKevin Smith is the Chief Technology Officer of Lucanet, a leading global provider of software solutions for the Office of the CFO. Kevin is experienced at building world-class SaaS platforms from the ground up as well as transforming on-prem software to SaaS. He has extensive experience building and scaling high-performing engineering teams deployed both on and near shore. As Lucanet’s CTO, Kevin is responsible for technology, engineering, product, and IT.Key Quotes*“AI is the biggest transformation in my career. The opportunity to automate meaningful, cognitive work is just profound.” — Kevin Smith, CTO, Lucanet*“What excites long-time customers is that our core values haven’t changed—ease of use, built-in intelligence, and fast time to value.” -– Elias Apel, CEO, Lucanet*“We’re not just transforming our product—we’re transforming how we build, test, and think as a team.” — Kevin Smith, CTO, LucanetTime Stamps[00:00] Introduction to Finance in Flow[00:21] Live from Lucanet World 2025[00:27] Challenges in Finance: Pace and Insight[00:39] Insights from Kevin Smith, CTO[01:55] The Impact of AI on Finance[03:34] AI in Practice: Tools and Recommendations[04:57] The Future of AI in Finance[08:30] Speed and Agility in Software Development[14:26] AI's Role in M&A Strategy[20:53] Customer Data Security in the Cloud[22:49] Reflections on Lucanet World[25:07] Conclusion and Future EpisodesLinksConnect with Kevin on LinkedInConnect with Elias on LinkedInLearn more about Lucanet Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.