Jimmy’s Lakeside Grill Windsor Golf Club, Windsor, California
Seat
$95 per person Reception, dinner and program
Credit
CE credit available
The program
What the evening covers.
Artificial Intelligence is no longer a future concept; it’s reshaping the economy today. Join us for an insightful discussion on how AI is transforming industries, driving productivity, creating investment opportunities, and redefining the competitive landscape for professionals, businesses, and investors alike.
The council opens its 2026–27 season with a presentation from Franklin Templeton’s equity group: where AI sits against the internet, mobile and cloud shifts before it, how far the technology has actually come, and what that means for the clients that estate planners, advisors, CPAs and trust officers serve.
In this session
Why AI is being called a platform shift on the scale of the internet, mobile and the cloud
What generative AI is, and the layers of data, models, training and hardware behind it
How fast it is being adopted, and where it already matches or outperforms industry experts
Where the investment opportunity sits today, and how it may spread beyond the technology sector
What AI is expected to do to knowledge work, and to professions like the ones in this room
The open challenges: energy, water, regulation, misinformation, bias and intellectual property
George Russell joined Franklin Templeton in 2010 and is a Senior Client Portfolio Manager for Franklin Equity, where he represents the team and explains its investment philosophy, process and current strategy to clients, consultants and decision makers in the United States and abroad.
He has more than twenty‑five years of investment experience. Before Franklin Templeton he spent eleven years at McMorgan and Company as an equity portfolio manager and co‑director of the equity group, and later worked at American Century Investments as a client portfolio manager covering quantitative equity and asset allocation strategies.
He holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Arizona and an M.B.A. from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, and is a CFA charterholder.
Afterward
This evening has passed.
The council writes up each evening after it runs, and this one’s notes and speaker materials appear here once they are on record.
At Merrill, we believe financial planning is about more than investments. It’s about helping individuals, families, and business owners make thoughtful decisions that protect what they’ve built, provide for the people they care about, and create a lasting legacy for future generations.
Oscar Robles’s Merrill team specializes in helping clients navigate some of life’s most complex financial decisions, including estate planning, wealth transfer strategies, and business owner exit planning. The team works closely with clients, their families, and their professional advisors to help simplify complex issues, address potential risks, and create customized strategies designed to preserve wealth, minimize uncertainty, and support the legacy they envision for the future.
Oscar Robles, CPFA Senior Financial Advisor and Vice President, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, Santa Rosa
Wine sponsor
Since 2003, Wooden Spoon Managed IT Services has helped North Bay businesses make technology more reliable, secure, and aligned to organizational goals. We specialize in supporting professional service firms, bringing together strong technical expertise with a personalized approach to IT.
The evening’s wine comes courtesy of the firm’s president, Zach Mesel.
Zach Mesel President, Wooden Spoon Managed IT Services
