Navigating AI in Finance: From Investment Decisions to Business Growth
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NOV
05
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An AI and Financial Innovation Advisory Council Sponsored Event
Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how finance professionals analyze information, make investment decisions, manage portfolios, and create value across businesses. But where is AI actually improving outcomes today, and where does human judgment remain essential?
This panel brings together perspectives from trading, hedge funds, and private equity to explore how AI is being applied across the investment and business lifecycle. Panelists will discuss how they are using AI in their own work, where they see the greatest opportunities for better research, decision-making, and operational performance, what risks and limitations remain, and how investment professionals can build a durable advantage as the technology evolves.
Designed for investment professionals, the conversation will focus on practical applications rather than hype, with concrete examples of tools, workflows, and lessons attendees can apply in their own work.
SPEAKERS
Kate Baumann | Kate Fisher Baumann is a Partner and Head of Investor Relations at Empyrean Capital Partners, a $3 billion event-driven multi-strategy hedge fund, where she leads the firm’s global investor relations strategy, including investor engagement, capital development, and brand positioning. She has nearly two decades of experience in financial services and previously spent seven years in business development and investor relations at Eton Park Capital Management, which managed more than $14 billion at its peak. She began her career as an investment analyst at J.P. Morgan Chase.
Alongside her investment-industry career, Kate has become an active voice on the practical application of artificial intelligence in finance and in our personal lives. Kate organized an AI educational Women in Finance Group that now has almost 400 members. She created KateBaumann.ai, a curated guide to the AI tools, research, training, experts, and resources she believes can help finance professionals work more effectively and stay current as the technology evolves. The guide now brings together more than 90 resources selected specifically for professionals working in and around finance.
In 2025, Kate was recognized as an Institutional Investor Hedge Fund Rising Star. She is a graduate of Georgetown University, where she studied finance and Spanish, and is Cofounder and Board Member of Women of Georgetown. Back To Top ^^
Sean King, CFA | Sean King, CFA, is a Trader at DoubleLine, bringing experience across fixed income, derivatives, and quantitative trading. Prior to joining DoubleLine, he was Vice President and Trader at Crabel Capital Management, a quantitative investment firm, and previously held a series of trading roles at Federated Hermes focused on U.S. rates, derivatives, and investment-grade credit. He began his career in finance after earning a degree in Finance from Duquesne University.
A CFA charterholder, Sean brings a practitioner’s perspective on how artificial intelligence, data science, and automation are changing investment research, market analysis, and trading. His career spans both traditional fixed-income investing and quantitative markets, giving him a particularly relevant vantage point on where AI can enhance investment decision-making, and where human judgment still matters. Back To Top ^^
Cici Zheng | Cici Zheng is a Managing Director at Corridor Capital, where she leads the firm’s Operations team and works with portfolio company executives to drive growth, improve financial performance, and build stronger operating capabilities. Prior to joining the Corridor team, Cici was a Partner at ParkerGale Capital, a private equity firm that invests in technology and software companies. As one of the first members of the Operating team at ParkerGale, Cici focused on driving value creation at their portfolio companies by developing and implementing programs that amplified go-to-market approaches, product positioning and financial results. Prior to joining ParkerGale, Cici worked at Bain & Company as a Case Team Leader advising clients across multiple industries on a variety of engagements including private equity due diligence, customer strategy, marketing and merger integrations. Before joining Bain, Cici was an Associate at HealthCare Royalty Partners as well as an Analyst at UBS where she was a part of the healthcare investment banking team.
Cici currently serves on the boards of AHQ Investment Holdings, CEO Warrior Holdings, Dart AMC Holdings, and IS Investment Holdings. She earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and her bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania. Back To Top ^^
Creighton Taylor, CFA | Creighton Taylor, CFA, is a Principal at Diffusion Venture Studio and President of The Creighton Group, where he works across venture building, investment strategy, technology, and workforce innovation. He has built tens of sophisticated mobile and web apps from the ground up since 2014, and now uses AI tools to help streamline workflows.
Creighton has spent his career at the intersection of finance, entrepreneurship, and technology, with a growing focus on how artificial intelligence can improve investment decision-making, organizational workflows, and the development of new ventures. He started his career at Western Asset Management for a year and then joined Rochdale Investment Management for three years, before pivoting to product management, financial management, and software development in tech startups in 2014. Creighton taught Managerial Finance and Venture Capital as a Lecturer at the University of California, Irvine for three years. He uses all of these skills at Diffusion Venture Studio and The Creighton Group. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BBA in Finance from Emory University, and is a CFA charterholder. Back To Top ^^
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Registration Fees |
Payment Information
We accept all major credit cards.
If you prefer to pay by check please email info@cfala.org and request to pay by check. Your registration will be completed manually and you will receive an email confirmation.
We accept all major credit cards.
If you prefer to pay by check please email info@cfala.org and request to pay by check. Your registration will be completed manually and you will receive an email confirmation.
Parking Information
Valet: $18
Valet: $18
Cancellations
Cancellations must be received in writing by 9:00 am the day prior to the event to receive a refund. No phone cancellations are accepted. Please e-mail info@cfala.org.
Cancellations must be received in writing by 9:00 am the day prior to the event to receive a refund. No phone cancellations are accepted. Please e-mail info@cfala.org.
Chair:
AJ Mildenberg, CFA
AJ Mildenberg, CFA
Event Chairs:
Tae Hong, CFA
Creighton Taylor, CFA
Tae Hong, CFA
Creighton Taylor, CFA
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CFA Society Los Angeles has determined that this program qualifies for 1.5 PL credit hours, under the guidelines of the CFA Institute Professional Learning program. If you are a CFA Institute member and a CFA Society Los Angeles Member, PL credit for your participation in this program will be automatically recorded in your PL tracking tool. |
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