In San Francisco, NYC, and Los Angeles, AI adoption feels like a fated conclusion. That it’s here, it’s here to stay, and that everyone from all over the country is “into it.”
Eh. Not quite.
Yes, it’s true that most fintech startups are building AI for practically every corner of consumer finance. Investors are absolutely looking for the next category-defining bells and whistles. Early adopters are ready to test a new way of managing their money simply because the technology feels exciting.
But San Francisco is not the entire country.
If you really want to know whether a consumer finance application has staying power, take it outside the “OZ” of technology hubs. Ask yourself how someone in Cleveland, Detroit, Tulsa, or any other city where people are more skeptical of AI would feel—cities where the people are way less interested in a product just because it uses the latest technology.
In fact, sometimes, in those places you get points knocked off for being too “techy.”
That skepticism might seem like a roadblock, but actually it’s an A+ reality check.
Because the person applying for an apartment in Cleveland probably doesn’t care whether your platform uses generative AI. They care whether it can help them qualify. They care about getting an apartment.
The person trying to finance a car in Detroit wants to know why they were denied—and if there’s a way around it.
The person working their butt off, paying their bills on time, and keeping money in the bank wants to know why one three-digit number is still the overlord of their finances.
Those are the real questions every fintech founder should be asking before jumping into building anything.
And that’s what makes Kristy Kim’s recent FINTECH.TV interview so real.
Kristy is no stranger to Fintech & Friends. She’s the Founder and CEO of TomoCredit, an AI-powered fintech company helping consumers build credit and better understand their financial lives. Her own experience with the credit system began after immigrating to the United States, building a successful career in investment banking, and then being denied an auto loan five times (!) simply because she didn’t have an established U.S. credit history.
The traditional system could only see her credit score. It couldn’t see the whole of her financial life.
In her FINTECH.TV interview, Kristy talks about what it takes to build a winning consumer finance app—and why the answer begins with solving an actual problem, not getting so enamored with the hype of it all.
In this segment, the conversation explores the difference between building AI for markets where people are eager to adopt it and building a product that can earn the trust of more skeptical day-to-day audiences.
Because if your product only makes sense to investors, fintech insiders, or consumers already excited about AI, you haven’t actually proven anything yet.
Other than it works inside a self-congratulatory bubble.
Kristy and the FINTECH.TV team also get into:
Why winning consumer finance applications must start with a real consumer problem
The difference between AI adoption on the coasts vs more skeptical markets
Why fintech founders should build for someone in Cleveland, Detroit, or Tulsa—not just SF and NYC
How credit scores can leave both qualified consumers and potential lenders missing out on opportunity
Why bank-account balances and cash-flow data can provide important context for lenders that outweigh credit scores
How TomoIQ is using AI to help consumers better understand their finances and creditworthiness
This is such an important conversation to have at this stage of the AI revolution because consumer finance does not need more AI for its own sake.
Give Kristy’s FINTECH.TV interview a watch and let me know what you think! Do you believe alternative financial data can create a better lending experience for both consumers and lenders?
And if you’ve not yet subscribed to Fintech & Friends… you know what to do!
Until next time,
Jenny
Connect with Kristy:
🔗 LinkedIn
🔗 TomoCredit
🔗 TomoIQ
If you’re a fintech looking for media coverage, like this FintechTV interview, get in touch:
💌 jenny@pinksharkpr.com
🦈 pinksharkpr.com
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