Money Moves: How Credit Karma uses AI to power smarter financial decisions

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1:22LinkedIn delivers the highest return on ad spend of major ad networks. Advertise on LinkedIn. Spend$250 on your first campaign and get a$250 credit. Go to linkedin.com slash campaign. Terms and conditions apply. Maybe 140 million members. And now we have the ability to understand and ask them what they want and actually get it done for them. To thrive in a rapidly evolving landscape, brands must move at an ever-increasing pace. I'm Matt Britton, founder and CEO of Suzy. Join me and key industry leaders as we dive deep into the shifting consumer trends within their industry, why it matters now, and how you can keep up.

1:57Welcome to the Speed of Culture.

2:03We are live here at CES in Las Vegas, and today we are thrilled to welcome Natasha Maidan, the head of marketing at Intuit Credit Karma. Natasha is a growth-focused marketing leader with deep experience spanning Amazon, Meta, Nestle, and other high-growth startups. Today, she leads NM Marketing for Credit Karma, driving financial progress for more than 150 million members through data, AI, and deeply consumer-led strategy. Natasha, thanks so much for joining today here at CES. Thank you. Pleasure to be here. Absolutely. So when you come to CES every year, obviously it's such a busy time. It's not exactly the most convenient time to be away from the office for a week.

2:37Why is it valuable to you and why do you take the time to come here to Las Vegas? I think it's a great time to look at what's happening around us. We get so focused into what we are doing and what we are building, but to like really widen your perspective in terms of what's happening in the world, even learning from our agency partners, vendors has been just so great. Absolutely. And from your seat in terms of overseeing the credit karma brand, what are some of the evolutions and innovations you're seeing here at CES that are most interesting to you? I mean, I think everybody's talking about AI and the way everyone's embracing AI, I think is a big thing.

3:10What we have to really look forward to is how do we differentiate ourselves as we move forward. As every software company has. As every software company, you know, we saw when social media came in, media was democratized. Like it was so easy to buy media. There was no divide between a larger company or a smaller company. And now with AI, we are seeing creative getting democratized. You know, we can build creative. We can, we let people, product. So what are companies like ours or brand like ours going to do in the future and differentiate ourselves? I think is the question for us. Yeah. And of course, the biggest moat, I believe at least in the world of AI is data.

3:48And with that, Credit Karma sits on top of one of the richest consumer, financial data sets in the world. Yes. Right. So that, I imagine, is something you're probably thinking about and leaning into. Just love to hear what your thoughts are around that. Yeah, 100%. We have 140 million members. So the scale is huge, right? And we have 40 million monthly active users that come to our platform. We have a lot of daily users, 7 to 8 million daily users. So I think what's in front of us is how do we leverage the insights that we get from data and how we can actually make their lives much easier. Yeah.

4:22You know, we are in the thick of tax season, for example, now. We help our members tell us what's going on in their lives. Like if you bought a house, for example, there's a deduction or they got like a new tax document they can upload and we can actually fill their taxes. And if it's a do-it-yourself tax, you could do it in 30 minutes or less. Yeah. That's where we are leveraging AI to say it's creating those done-for-you experiences. When they file their taxes, they get their refund. we can tell them how best to use that, like putting in a high yield savings account or paying off their debt, or if they want to get a car, how would they be able to do that?

5:00So there's a lot of that work that's happening. And now we have the ability to understand and ask them what they want and actually get it done for them. Yeah, I mean, I think there's such a big opportunity as I think about financial data as a consumer, right? The world's more complex than ever before. So for example, you might be paying for the same Netflix subscription in two different places. Or you may have just incurred a medical cost that your health insurance provider provides. Or you might have a Chase Sapphire credit card and you just paid for a hotel, but they reimburse you$300 a year.

5:33Like there are so many nooks and crannies of every consumer and the complexity. And I think what Credit Karma can do with all this data is make it simple and unpack insights that ultimately make consumers better, purveys of their financial situation. 2 ,000 % you're right. We are able to, like, there are over 80 ,000 data points that we have. 80 ,000. Yes. And our models are built to personalize information for them, understand what their intent is. If they're coming to check a credit score, we better give them the credit score and also tell them how they can build their credit. Right. If they're coming to get a credit card, we tell them what are their best credit card options and give them advice and actually get them to help get the credit card.

6:15So we understand what they're aware of and provide them with those personalized solutions. I think as we look forward, we would love to understand how do we connect the dots within what their financial journey is. We are very good about giving them the next best action, moving them along their journey, but really understanding what their long-term goals are and being able to help them drive towards that would be the next frontier. Yeah, it's interesting. We're seeing the same sort of thing happen in the personal health space where you have this notion of quantified self, right? Where it's like you have your Apple Watch and you have your eight sleep mattress and you're ordering.

6:51Right. And you're tracking all these things and that data can unlock insights about your health. I was recently speaking at a retirement industry conference and I was saying the two actually might collide because if quantified self helps you understand how long you're going to live. Yes. And then financial planning is obviously something that's going to support that lifespan. The two, it all might come together as like a personal data-driven dashboard of you as an individual and the decisions you need to make. You know, I always say this, finances and health are the two most personal things. So many emotions attached to it.

7:23And those outcomes on the financial side and the health side determine how you live. And when people talk about privacy, those are the privacy areas, right? That's what people care about. They care about their health data. And you being able to have access to that data to be able to make the right decisions in your life, I think is such a big unlock. Yes. So when you think about, I guess, driving the brand forward, because Credit Karma used to just be you checked your credit score and then it became more of a platform. And of course, it got acquired by Intuit, I believe. And now it's obviously has its tentacles in many different places.

7:55Where are the areas that you're really leaning into for the brand here in 2026? Yeah, great question. We started out as a credit score provider, right? And we were very trusted for that. We were saying unblocking the financial system, which was a big black box. So making sure our members understand what is a credit score, what does it do for you, and how it can unlock your financial trajectory. But that has become commoditized now. So the challenge for us right now is to actually look at a member's entire financial journey and be able to provide them the messaging with the products and the right targeting in terms of what they can do.

8:35So right from financial advice, which is not just about building credit, which is really about building a financial health profile. And then being able to give you the tools to be able to do those things. We ask members how much they want to engage with it. So, for example, there are a few who would be like, I want to set it and forget it. You automate everything for me. There are others who are like, no, I'm going to get into it. This is like health, right? I'm going to manage this for my own self. And we just need guidance from you. So understanding what they want and what we can give them along the journey is like what we are trying to do.

9:08My goal here is from a marketing standpoint, push the original mission, which is very much championing financial progress. And that means different things to different people. So we are really expanding the brand from a narrow credit score focus to more of a helping them drive financial progress. Of course, Intuit used to own an overseer product called Mint, which I used all the time. And then Mint got kind of discontinued. And then now Credit Karma is kind of slowly taking its place. So is the future to be that individual's kind of personal financial dashboard that does all these things? That's exactly what it is.

9:43We really want to make sure folks can maximize their money outcomes. And there are many ways to being able to do that consolidating debt, saving on taxes, saving money for the bigger goals and making the right investment. So it's really from credit building to wealth building. That's what we are building our platform for. It's interesting because there's a lot of discussion right now in terms of like, what's the future of work? What jobs really matter? When I think about the financial services space, you think about an accountant that just does somebody's taxes. I personally believe that AI is going to be able to do all of our taxes for us moving forward as long as you have the data from a platform like Credit Karma and you might not need an accountant.

10:22So that's great for a consumer, maybe not so great for an accountant, but an accountant needs to figure out how can they up-level and be an advisor? But the question I have in my mind is, are we gonna need wealth managers moving forward? If all my information is in credit card and you have 140 million other members information and you actually have historical data, you could know, here's how you should look at investing. Here's how you should look at spending as a percentage of your income or your mortgage payment. And really that data-driven framework If somebody follows it, they will lead a path towards financial wellness.

10:57So just interesting like that. If you become the platform and you have the data, it really opens up a huge opportunity for the brand. 100%. And I also think that you'll always need both. Yeah. We will need the data to get educated, do a lot of things for you. But the need for an expert will always be there. We are seeing in taxes too. We always say it's HI, human intelligence, and AI, artificial intelligence. You need an expert to say, hey, these should be your strategies. Moving forward for next year, keeping in mind for these and things. Yeah, I think you'll need both. I do not think we'll be at a place where we can completely eliminate expenses.

11:29Right. I mean, it all depends upon the differentiated value because already if you look at the returns generated by the wealth management community minus their fees, it doesn't even outperform the S &P 500. So even before an age of AI, you have to question it. So I guess my point is it's a perfect opportunity and a lot of people can't afford wealth managers. Let's be real. So I think putting that aside for a second, this does create the opportunity for somebody to have sort of a financial consultant in a box. This is, you know, and we talk about that. We want to be the financial assistant in your pocket.

12:02You have to be able to do it over your phone. I think it does open up a lot of opportunity for small businesses who have access to. They have to pay a lot of money. It's the same thing with a lot of other folks. Globally, too. Gen Z, millennials. Like they are coming and learning and they're going to social media to learn. They're coming to our platforms to learn. So for sure, it does democratize that information access. Yeah, I have two kids in college right now, and I help them get their first credit card set up and help them. And a lot of kids who are going into college and exiting, they don't teach financial literacy in school like they should.

12:36And it's so important. It should be mandatory. Yeah, and they don't even know what their credit score means. So I know that you have a product called Credit Spark that helps turn everyday payments into credit building opportunities. Talk to me about financial literacy, the new consumer, and some of the opportunities you think exist there. It's huge right now, Matt. There is so much information that is available on the internet, and we call it a FinTalk. People go to TikTok to get a lot of financial advice. It's not personalized. And so when they come to our platform, we have an opportunity to understand what their goals are, understand their financial picture.

13:11Even when they don't have it, help them build it step by step and do it in a way where it's durable. We don't go back and say, hey, you increase our credit score in three days. Like that's not durable. How do you actually save money? What are your best financial habits that you want to be able to build? Can you pay your rent and get credit for that and build credit through your rent? So there's many aspects of building credit that we actually educate and help make it happen for our members. And that's what CreditSpark does. And of course, over time, you're going to be able to continue to do that in a personalized way as well.

13:43Yeah, 100 % personalized. We'll be right back with the Speed of Culture after a few words from our sponsors.

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15:46Save time and money with Stamps.com. Over 4 million businesses have skipped the line with Stamps.com. Join them to save up to 90 % off carrier rates from your computer or phone right now. Print postage for certified mail, registered mail, and packages in seconds. Then schedule a pickup right from your home or office. For a limited time, go to stamps.com and use code podcast for a free welcome gift. Taxes and fees apply. So obviously, as somebody who heads marketing for Credit Karma, growth is obviously a big mandate heading into any marketing head's list of priorities entering the year. What does growth look like for Credit Karma, whether it's driving more business from existing users or preventing churn or acquiring new users?

16:30How do you stack rank that and what are some of the strategies you're going to deploy in the year ahead? Yeah, great question. We have 140 million members. We want to make sure that we are serving them well. It's very easy to go out and get more members, which we are going to do. I think from a growth standpoint, our acquisition is going to be focused on Gen Z. So younger consumers, Credit Karma was built on the premise that we were educating younger consumers how to use credit. We built it on millennials, how to use a credit score and get their first credit card, their car or whatever. But we kind of lost our way a little bit with the younger consumers now, the 18 to 24.

17:05So we are going specifically to acquire those in social channels being where they are. But the rest 140 million members that already come to our platform, we have huge opportunity for them to try other products. Yeah. We have grown beyond credit scores. We have now Credit Spark. We talk about that. They can pay taxes with us. We have a Credit Karma money account. Subscription monitoring tool. Yeah. All of that. So there's an ability to be able to do that, which I think it behooves us as marketers to create those engagement funnels to actually make sure that they are attaching to two or three different products.

17:38When they come to even check a score, can we actually have them look at a credit card? When they come to buy a credit card or take a credit card from our platform, can we have them look at our Credit Karma money account and see if that would be a place that they would bank for us? So we are working through a lot of creating a lot of those growth loops for existing members and those funnels. Right. And when you talk about Gen Z, of course, they're known as the iPhone generation, the first generation grew up with the iPhone in the household. And that's their de facto way of consuming content. And when they're looking at their phone to consume content, they're consuming content, not from traditional media sources, but from other people, which is where the creator economy comes in.

18:14So curious to hear how you're looking at storytelling, content creation and creators in driving growth and going after this Gen Z audience. Exactly. The more AI gets adopted and prevalent, and you'll see that at CES we were talking about this morning, is that targeting is going to be learned. It's going to become more and more of a science, right? Yeah. Content creation will become more and more of a science. AI is going to be able to generate a lot of that. Couldn't agree more. Right? So who are people going to believe? They're going to believe people they trust. And brands. And brands they trust, right?

18:47So for us, our strategy now is really to invest in micro-influencers and creators, because when it comes from them and their communities that they are leading and there's trust within those communities, who they are going to listen to. It's going to be less important in terms of what is being said. It's going to be more important of who is going to say it. Medium over message. Yes. Right. So that, I think, is a big focus for us, especially as we connect with Gen Z. And how do you drive that type of execution at scale? because it's one thing to, I mean, when you think about the scale of your business, to be able to create a network of micro-influencers to scale, I would assume executionally isn't the easiest thing to do.

19:26It's not the easiest thing. It's for us to be able to give them the tools, actually, to be able to do that so they can scale. Right. And they can scale their messages and amplify, and we are able to do that. And it's going to be a part of our media mix. Of course. That would be the only thing. Of course. And when you think about just storytelling in general, and we talk about financial literacy, Do you find that just adding value to consumers and creating content that helps them financially is the best way that you can just capture their attention and drive any type of business impact? I do think as long as we are adding value and solving a problem that is important to them, they will listen.

20:03Yeah. And it's important to understand that for them to understand that we get them. You know, the big part of the brand work we did is what we understood was finance is so personal, just like health is. And it is so deeply rooted in how they grew up. What was the financial situation at home? What are their aspirations? They're folks who may have had an easier life. They're folks who may have not had an easier life. how we talk to them and how we engage with them, how we make them feel seen and heard is really important. And it's a very thin rope that we have to walk on. If we say, oh, we got this done for you.

20:41Don't worry about it. They're like, you don't even understand my situation. Or we say, this is really, really hard. They're like, oh, I'm very stressed about this. You're making me even more stressed by telling me what so much work that I need to do with. So we just have to understand where they are in their journey and how do we communicate with them. And that's a A big part of storytelling is understanding their fears, their aspiration, where they feel guilt, where do they feel shame? And what is our role over there? It's super complex to be able to do that. And, you know, we don't claim that we've figured it out or we understand it.

21:12Right. Shifting gears, we wrap up here. I'd love to hear a little bit more about you and your career journey. You know, as I mentioned at The Jump, you spent time at Amazon and Meta and Nestle. when you look back at your career journey, what are some of the things that you think you focus on that in the rear view mirror ended up being fortuitous or the right things to focus on just in terms of personal and professional development? Yeah, great question. I think the through line for me has been I was always focused on building the right skill set and maniacally focused on what I don't have. I don't think it's the right thing to do all the time.

21:48is like, I need to build. So when this was pre-social media, when that came in, we were like, we need to be at the forefront of experimenting into it. We were at Nestle. Ours was the first brand with Butterfinger and Nerds, the Wonka candy that we participated in a Facebook campaign. That was the first time we did it. We didn't know whether this would work or not work. So being able to like be adaptable to change, see what's coming new and being able to participate has, I think, been the through line for me. I've also really focused on, you may not get the best job or the job that you want all the time, but the job that's given to you need to ace it.

22:26You can get to the next job. And I think what helped me was really getting closer to the consumer at Nestle because that's the holy grail for like really understanding CPG marketing, right? As you know, is understand the feelings, the aspirations, the fears of our members and really deeply empathizing with them That, when you come into the tech world, is such an addition where you are actually using models and science. EQ versus IQ, right? EQ versus IQ. And when you bring the two together, you create breakthrough creative. Right. And that works. And that saves money, time, and everything. In terms of some of the takeaways you might have from companies like Amazon and Meta where you work, what is it about those cultures or the way that there are new employees or train their existing employees that makes them so successful?

23:13I think at Amazon, I will say customer obsession is actually at the heart of everything. You may be at any other, you may work in any function. It doesn't, you know, in many companies, it sits with marketing and your little voice of the consumer. Everyone's focused on customer obsession at Amazon, which I really loved. And everyone's trying to solve a customer problem through just different lenses. lenses. And we don't settle. We actually bring in folks we think are going to be able to do that. And folks who are actually challenging the status quo has been a big thing. And I think the tech companies that have been successful have brought in people who are more amenable to change and have been able to adopt.

23:56They sit there and say, well, there is a problem here. I'm going to go tackle it. I'm going to run an experiment. And it's easy to be able to do that. Whereas in CPG, is just hard. You try to change something. You have to get distribution, get on shelves. There's a physicality to it. And it gives you a month before you get any kind of data back, you know? So that's why I understand the consumer is so important because once you bring something in the shelf, it better be right. It better be right. And you're spending all of your capital in like predicting what that future can be. And you do it by understanding the customer deeply.

24:28Here, if you come into tech, you can just experiment and see if something's working or not. But imagine when you bring the two together, you just become that much smarter. Yeah, I love that. That's a great framework. So to wrap up here, we always ask our guests if there's a saying or mantra that helps kind of encapsulate their professional journey of the day and just wonder what comes to mind for you. I think for me, I always say if I don't drive, I will be driven. So I need to drive. So what does that look like for you? Being proactive. Yeah, that's huge. Taking initiative, right? Taking initiative, looking around the corners, making sure you have an amazing team that can tackle the here and now.

25:06So you have the ability to look across and look around the corners and you're more prepared for what is to come next. And I have to imagine you want them to take initiative too, right? Exactly. And I think if we do all that job well, we are already ahead of the curve. So we are not reacting. You have to play offense. You cannot do. I think a lot of younger people in the professional world just wait for permission because they don't want to disrupt the status quo. But I think especially in a world like now, and you see this evidently at a place like CES, the world is changing so fast. And by the time you get your permission, it's going to be too late.

25:40And you just have to dive in. I think for younger people, the biggest risk is not taking one. Correct. 2 ,000%. I think there will be no room for reactive. Right. There has to be. Waiting to be told what to do. Waiting to be told. You have to jump in. And companies like ours, I am looking for folks on my team to tell me what we are missing. Right. What's missing and how can we build products that are different? How can we build messages that are different? And if I don't hear that, like then we are not pushing ourselves. That's right. And if we are afraid of failing, we are not pushing ourselves enough.

26:11So that is a given. Yeah. I love that. Well, you heard it here, everybody. Drive or be driven. And it's clear that Natasha here is doing the driving of the Credit Karma brand. I just want to thank you for taking the time today during your busy CES week to chat with us today. Thank you. It was amazing, Chad. Absolutely. It's been a great discussion, and there'll be more here. We are live here in Las Vegas at CES. On behalf of the Suzy AdWi team, thanks again to Natasha Maidan, the head of marketing at Intuit Credit Karma, for joining us today. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and view the Speed of Culture podcast on your favorite podcast platform.

26:42Until next time, see you soon, everyone. Take care. Bye-bye.

26:49The Speed of Culture is brought to you by Suzy as part of the AdWi podcast network and Agus creator network. You can listen and subscribe to all Adweek's podcasts by visiting adweek.com slash podcasts. To find out more about Suzy, head to suzy.com. And make sure to search for the speed of culture in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere else podcasts are found. Click follow so you don't miss out on any future episodes. On behalf of the team here at Suzy, thanks for listening.

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