FinovateFall is happening in less than a month, and we’re taking a look at the fintech trends that will grace the stage over the course of the three-day show.

This year’s word cloud of themes hints at the major points the demoing companies will showcase on September 23 and 24, and leads us to the topics of discussion we’ll see on stage during the panels and keynote discussions on September 25. Register in advance to secure your seat at the show.

I’ve broken down this year’s trends into three groups; the big, the small, and the surprising:

The big trends

Artificial Intelligence (AI)
This is a trend that needs no introduction or explanation. We’ve seen AI come out on top as the largest trend in every Finovate conference this year, and next month’s show will be no different.

Data
Data is a necessary component behind two of this year’s hottest trends– AI and machine learning. And since banks have an overload of data that gets larger by the minute, the way that they manage data is just as important as how they use it.

Compliance
Buried within the regtech subsector of fintech, compliance is one of those topics that no one wants to think about but everyone needs to have a plan for. And these days, compliance is no longer just for banks. With bank-fintech partnerships on the rise, fintechs are increasingly expected to play by the rules, too.

Small but mighty trends

Chatbots
Chatbots may not dominate the conversation at FinovateFall this year but that doesn’t mean people won’t be talking about them. Customer experience is top on the minds of both banks and fintechs alike, and having a chatbot can ease a lot of headaches associated with taking care of customers, including lowering costs, offering the ability to scale, and providing a mobile-first solution.

Customer service
In many ways, 2019 is the era of the customer in fintech. We’ve seen both banks and startups throughout the industry refocus their solutions not only to attain new customers, but also to retain existing ones. As these efforts come to a head, investment in customer service solutions is at an all-time high.

Investing
Investment technologies experienced their hey-day in 2015, when the use of AI was in its infancy and new robo-advisors were launching every week. Now, after much consolidation, investing technology is making a comeback with more sophisticated AI advancements.

Surprising trends

IoT devices
Fintech may be all about technology, but the application of IoT devices has been slow to take off. Applications for Google Glass failed to prove valuable and the growth of Fitbit Pay remained stagnant. Today, not many new players in fintech have come forward.

Mobile wallets
Technology that was the hype of 2011, mobile wallets, are everywhere and no where. A lot of players offer them, including PayPal, Square, and most alt-banking services providers. However, mobile wallets have faded into the background of fintech hype as they have transitioned into a necessity for many players.

Insurtech
Unlike the previous two trends, insurtech is surprising not because it appears in the word cloud of trends we’ll see at FinovateFall, but because it appears to be such a small fraction compared to the size of other trends. The U.S. has never had a large number of insurtech players, especially compared to the U.K., but insurance is widely used across the country. Perhaps 2020 will mark the year of insurtechs in the U.S.

Sometimes the best way to determine the latest trends is to ask the experts.

So that’s exactly what we’ll be doing at FinovateFall next month when three of fintech’s most renowned analysts take the stage to offer their take on what they see as today’s hottest trend in fintech.

Join us for the Analyst All Star session at FinovateFall next month; September 23 through 25 in New York (you won’t want to miss out; register today). Each analyst will have seven minutes on stage to describe their thoughts on what’s driving fintech innovation today. Here’s who you can expect to see on stage:

Alyson Clarke @alysonmclarke

Clarke is a principal analyst at Forrester. With more than 19 years of financial services industry experience, she is a highly skilled expert with extensive industry experience in both wealth management and banking. Clarke has global expertise, having previously worked at Forrester in the financial services vertical in Forrester’s Sydney, London, and San Francisco offices. She is now based in New York and specializes in digital and non-digital channel strategy and innovation. In particular, Clarke focuses on the sales, service, and customer experience of financial services and advice across online channels, smartphones, tablets, and branches.

Jacob Jegher @jjegher

Jegher is an experienced fintech executive and digital banking thought leader. He advises clients on emerging technologies and business strategies related to retail, small business, and corporate digital banking. Jegher provides strategic consulting to financial institutions and solution providers on issues ranging from digital strategy to vendor selection. In addition to his client-facing responsibilities, Jegher leads Javelin’s overall strategy, marketing, and product development efforts.

Most recently, Jegher was Vice President of Global Solution Marketing and Head of Analyst Relations at FIS, where he was responsible for marketing strategy efforts across all business units and solutions. Jegher also brings extensive expertise in the banking research and consulting field, having spent over 10 years as a Research Director at Celent.

Alissa Knight @alissaknight

Knight is a senior analyst with Aite Group where she is focused on researching cybersecurity issues impacting the financial services, healthcare, and fintech industries by assessing sector trends, creating segment taxonomies, looking at market sizing, preparing forecasts, and developing industry models. She provides market research, competitive intelligence, and consulting services in the cybersecurity market through unbiased, objective and accurate research and content development. Out of her research, Knight produces reports and white papers, as well as provides advisory services and often keynotes at cybersecurity conferences, seminars, and roundtables.

Knight also sits as the Chairperson on the Board of Directors for Brier & Thorn and was previously CEO of Applied Watch and Netstream.