As one of the world’s largest exchange operators, Cboe Global Markets plays a pivotal role in powering the global financial ecosystem. With platforms spanning equities, options, futures, foreign exchange, and digital assets, Cboe facilitates billions of messages every day. This immense scale generates staggering volumes of data — a challenge and an opportunity that the organization has embraced as it builds an AI-driven future.

In the final part of this three-part series, Eileen Smith, SVP of Data & Analytics at Cboe, sits with Clyde Gillard, North America AI GTM Leader at HPE, as they explore the need for continuous training, fostering a decentralized culture of experimentation, skills future data professionals need, the societal implications of AI, and the delicate balance between automation and human oversight.

The first part of this series traced Smith’s journey to Cboe, highlighting her leadership in transforming the company’s data infrastructure and managing the massive data volumes that power its global markets. The second installment explored how Cboe is leveraging AI to drive innovation and efficiency, its evolving AI strategy, high-impact use cases, and the cultural shifts helping teams across the organization adopt advanced technologies with confidence.

Education as a cornerstone of AI adoption

Smith emphasizes that Cboe’s commitment to AI education is not a one-time initiative. It is one of the AI Center of Excellence’s (AICOE) main priorities. With over 1,000 of the company’s 1,600 employees already trained, the scale of the effort reflects a deep-rooted belief in continuous learning.

The AICOE not only offers self-serve learning resources but also conducts instructor-led classes and one-on-one sessions, she adds. These are customized to meet the needs of different teams, including sales groups seeking AI-specific insights.

“We create bespoke training for each of the groups to make sure we’re addressing their issues,” Smith explains. “The thing about AI is it keeps changing. So, everyone has to just keep training.”

From data discipline to AI fluency

Cboe’s AI culture didn’t emerge overnight — it is built on a foundation of disciplined data practices. Smith recounts how the company began by centralizing its data analytics team, enabling standardized, cloud-accessible data that business users could easily navigate.

“Providing a whole bunch of data is just a mess for business users,” she says.

Training business users to use tools effectively has been a key part of the strategy. The goal is not just access but empowerment — ensuring that employees can extract meaningful insights and make informed decisions.

“We work hard to train our business users so that they’re using the tools properly and are getting the most out of it,” Smith notes.

Sparking curiosity and ownership

One of the most striking outcomes of Cboe’s data and AI initiatives is the ripple effect it has created across the organization. The company’s quantitative research team conducts deep-dive analyses that often inspire others to explore AI on their own.

“Once people start seeing what can be done, they want to play too,” Smith says.

With a 22-person analytics team, Cboe doesn’t aim to centralize all AI efforts. Instead, it fosters a decentralized culture of experimentation and innovation. Employees across departments are encouraged to explore AI tools and bring their own ideas to the table.

“There’s always a challenge on that because somebody’s like, ‘Oh, I want to bring in this AI thing,’ or ‘Oh, I want to bring in this data thing,’” Smith admits. “But the upside is that people are thinking about things on their own. They’re all using the same tools, which is the biggest thing in my mind.”

Moving forward, she states that while technical proficiency remains foundational — “you need to know SQL or Python” — she emphasizes that hard skills alone are not enough.

Smith urges young professionals to stay curious and flexible. “Be interested, be excited,” she says. “Look for the right tool to do things. Don’t become wedded to the way you did things last week or last year.”

She recounts a recent moment when her team approached a quantitative research problem using traditional methods. “Let’s look at AI and see if it can help,” she recalls suggesting. Continuous learning and intellectual agility are critical, says Smith. “Don’t get stuck in what you think you know. If you get stuck, you get stuck.”

AI’s role in society: Augmentation over replacement

When asked about AI’s broader societal impact, Smith offers a measured perspective. Despite the flood of headlines predicting mass displacement, she remains skeptical of a future where machines fully replace humans.

“I have a very hard time believing it,” she says. “There are important things that humans do. Asking the questions is still the most important piece of things we do.”

Smith believes AI will increasingly assist in solving problems, but the human ability to frame those problems remains irreplaceable. “People’s value is going to be in how you look at things, ask questions, and leverage AI to do things for you.”

Agentic AI: Promise and precaution

As the conversation shifts to agentic AI, Smith expresses cautious optimism. She sees potential but insists on maintaining human oversight, especially in regulated industries like finance.

“For us at least, it’s going to be creating what you want, but not letting it push the button,” she explains. Smith shares a cautionary tale about a chatbot that misled a customer regarding airline policy, resulting in a legal loss for the company.

While she anticipates greater comfort with agentic AI in the near future, she stresses the importance of accuracy and accountability. “We want to make sure what we’re sending out of our four walls is accurate.”

Looking ahead, Smith identifies responsible implementation as her biggest concern. In a highly regulated environment, data security and governance are paramount. “We want to make sure our data’s not leaking out. That’s a huge thing.”

Yet she’s equally energized by the possibilities. AI is already transforming workflows and unlocking new capabilities. “It’s game-changing right now, and we’re still just at the surface of using it,” she concludes.

CDO Magazine appreciates Eileen Smith for sharing her insights with our global community.