AI in iGaming: CreateFuture Appoints Industry Veterans to Tackle Data Debt

The iGaming landscape is currently defined by a massive gap between technological ambition and technical debt. While many operators are eager to deploy Artificial Intelligence, their underlying data estates are often a mess of legacy systems. CreateFuture, a consultancy with a decade of experience in the sector, is addressing this by hiring two seasoned executives from the operator side to help clients navigate these complexities. Eddie Bennett joins as Director of Lottery and iGaming, and Andy Wright takes on the role of Strategic Advisor.

Both executives report to Hass Peymani, Industry Director of iGaming, and bring a wealth of practical experience that engineers alone cannot provide. In a regulated industry, an AI model is only as good as its audit trail. If a personalization engine or a fraud detection tool cannot explain its decision-making process to a regulator, it will never leave the pilot phase. Bennett and Wright have spent their careers managing P&Ls and dealing directly with regulators, giving them the insight needed to build defensible business cases for KI investments.

Numbers and facts

CreateFuture’s scale is significant for a specialist consultancy. They have delivered more than 400 projects, including over 50 focused on AI. Their commitment to major clients is illustrated by their engagement with FanDuel, where over 100 CreateFuture experts are currently deployed. The firm also boasts impressive technical credentials, holding Preferred Anthropic Partner status with 100 Claude-certified architects. Additionally, they are an OpenAI Select Partner with over 650 competency badges and hold more than 500 AWS certifications.

Eddie Bennett’s background includes 20 years in senior management at Allwyn, Skybet, and Lottoland, covering lottery, sports betting, and retail. Andy Wright brings 27 years of experience, having led major integrations such as the FDJ United acquisition of Kindred Group. Their primary goal is to solve the "Data Problem": ensuring that when a system asks who a customer is, it gets one consistent answer instead of three conflicting ones from different legacy platforms.

"Almost every operator we meet has a slide deck of AI pilots and a data estate that cannot support any of them. That is not a failure of ambition, it is the cost of fifteen years of growth by acquisition." - Hass Peymani, Industry Director of iGaming, CreateFuture

Background

The consultancy is currently working with evoke to build a data foundation that provides a single, consistent view of players across different brands and markets. This is not just a theoretical exercise; it is already supporting live production workloads for fraud detection and customer service. By consolidating the data estate, operators can ensure that their AI models read the same player journey as their compliance and finance teams. This alignment is what makes the technology viable in highly regulated environments like the UK or Germany.

Why it matters for German players

For players in Germany, where the State Treaty on Gambling 2021 (GlüStV) dictates strict limits and monitoring, these technological improvements are crucial. The German market requires precise tracking of the 1,000 Euro monthly deposit limit and the 1 Euro stake limit for slots via the LUGAS system. If operators can successfully consolidate their data, they can offer much more accurate responsible gambling tools. AI can identify harmful patterns earlier and more reliably than manual checks, but only if the data is clean. For German players, this means a safer environment in GGL-licensed casinos, as compliance becomes more automated and less prone to error.

What it means for GGL-licensed casinos

German license holders are under intense scrutiny to meet technical compliance standards. The expertise brought by CreateFuture suggests that simply buying an AI tool isn't enough; the transformation must be internal. Operators need to ensure their platforms are not just functional but auditable. Those who fail to integrate their data properly risk failing GGL audits. The appointment of experts like Bennett and Wright signals a shift toward professionalized, compliance-first tech strategies, which is exactly what is needed to thrive under the strict German regulatory regime.