Ep. 167 - AI Joins The Payments Team, with Pagos, live from Money 20/20 USA 2026

In the latest episode of The Payments Shed Podcast, filmed live from Money20/20 USA 2026 in Las Vegas, Sarah Stapp is joined by Klas Bäck, Co-Founder & CEO of Pagos, for a special Walk & Talk exploring how artificial intelligence is changing the way merchants manage payments, why better visibility into payment performance is becoming essential and how collaboration could help businesses solve some of the industry's most persistent challenges. For years, payments teams have relied heavily on data analysts, technical specialists and complex reporting tools to understand what's happening across their payment infrastructure. Now, AI is beginning to change that. Klas takes us inside the growing role of AI in payments operations, exploring how payments managers can access insights, investigate performance issues and make more informed decisions. The conversation also tackles where AI should and shouldn't be trusted with payments decisions. While automation and intelligent analytics promise significant improvements in efficiency, payments remain an area where accuracy, commercial impact and operational control matter enormously. A major focus is Pagos' approach to payments intelligence and monitoring. Unlike payment processors or orchestration providers, Pagos deliberately operates outside the transaction flow, focusing on helping businesses understand and improve the performance of their existing payments infrastructure. They also explore the challenge of turning payments data into meaningful action. Identifying a drop in authorisation rates, an unexpected performance issue or an opportunity to improve payment outcomes is only the beginning. The discussion then turns to one of the biggest challenges facing subscription and recurring-payment businesses: failed payments. From involuntary churn to recurring transaction performance, merchants across different industries often encounter remarkably similar problems. Klas introduces RETAIN, Pagos' initiative bringing recurring-payments merchants together, exploring why creating a space for businesses to compare challenges, exchange insights and discuss best practices could help improve payment performance across the wider ecosystem. Plus, Klas takes on The Payments Shed's legendary Shelf of Shame, challenging the payments metrics that merchants spend too much time obsessing over and questioning whether the industry is always measuring the things that genuinely matter. Recorded live on the exhibition floor at Money20/20 USA 2026, this special Walk & Talk explores how AI is becoming an increasingly valuable member of the payments team, why visibility and actionable intelligence are critical to better payment performance and how merchants can achieve more by learning from one another. The Payments Shed Podcast is sponsored by Cyclops. Cyclops helps payments companies offer crypto acceptance, stablecoin settlement and payouts through one unified infrastructure platform. Find out more: https://cyclops.finance/ The Payments Shed Podcast is sponsored by Salesloft. Salesloft uses agentic AI to turn buyer, conversation, deal and forecast data into clear actions that help revenue teams sell smarter. Find out more: https://www.salesloft.com The Payments Shed Podcast is sponsored by Mastercard Open Finance. Mastercard Open Finance enables businesses to use consumer-permissioned financial data to create more connected and personalised financial experiences. Find out more: https://www.mastercard.com/global/en/business/open-finance.html The Payments Shed Podcast is partnered with PCN. PCN is a global boutique recruitment agency connecting leading talent and businesses across fintech, cybersecurity, SaaS, e-commerce and Salesforce. Find out more: https://teampcn.com/ Disclaimer: Views expressed are those of The Payments Shed Podcast hosts and guests, not their respective employers. Nothing discussed constitutes investment, legal, tax or financial advice.