In Episode 48 of Planning Aces, three seasoned CFOs share how AI is transforming FP&A into a strategic lever for value creation. Andrew Casey of Amplitude highlights how AI agents are democratizing analytics, enabling faster workflows and autonomous decision-making. Eric Brown of Cohesity compares today’s AI wave to past tech revolutions, underscoring the immense capital intensity, concentration of players, and the coming “epic data battle.” Chris Miorin of Apexanalytix emphasizes structuring data and investing in on-prem infrastructure to accelerate product velocity and expand development capacity. Together, they reveal FP&A’s central role in turning AI into action and results.
Brett Knowles’ Key Takeaways
Brett Knowles frames AI as FP&A’s most powerful tool for navigating turbulence and uncertainty. He stresses its dual roles: sensing business shifts and serving as a creative “team member” for planning. Brett cautions leaders against “AI washing”—the cosmetic layering of AI onto old processes—and insists true advantage comes from meaningful integration. His message is clear: FP&A leaders must not only adopt AI but also lead its strategic application to capture real and enduring competitive value.
“AI is only as powerful as the data it touches—and FP&A is where potential becomes competitive advantage.”
Andrew Casey – CFO, Amplitude
Andrew Casey spotlights the rise of AI agents within Amplitude’s platform, designed to automate tasks, optimize workflows, and empower everyday users with analytics. He describes how experimentation and personalization at scale are now possible, driving faster insights and business impact. Within finance, his team applies AI to reconciliations, disclosures, and order operations to improve efficiency and accuracy. For Casey, the opportunity lies in extending AI’s reach across workflows, ensuring accessibility for both customers and the finance function itself.
Eric Brown – CFO & COO, Cohesity
Eric Brown contrasts AI with the dot-com and cloud waves, noting its unprecedented capital intensity and broad applicability. He predicts only a handful of global LLM providers will dominate due to massive infrastructure costs. Brown sees AI enabling order-of-magnitude cost reductions, such as replicating expensive applications with agentic AI. He underscores data as the new strategic battleground, with competitive advantage hinging on control of privileged, curated data. For FP&A, AI’s speed and scale mark a revolutionary break from past tech adoption.
Chris Miorin – CFO, Apexanalytix
Chris Miorin emphasizes Apexanalytix’s proactive investment in AI infrastructure—both hardware and software—to support redundancy, accelerate product roadmaps, and improve development capacity by as much as 40%. He highlights the importance of structured, accessible data as the foundation for leveraging AI across CRM, ERP, and other core systems. For Miorin, AI is not a trend but a disciplined approach to efficiency and innovation, ensuring that product development and customer solutions are faster, more effective, and strategically aligned.
What unites these Planning Aces is the recognition that AI’s promise depends on disciplined execution: structured data, thoughtful integration, and leadership that avoids “AI washing.” From workflows to industry economics, the message is clear—FP&A must move beyond experimentation to become the force that translates AI’s potential into enduring competitive advantage.