Where organizational decision-makers focus their attention is a central premise in the behavioural theory of the firm and is particularly important as organizations adapt to technological changes in dynamic environments. Structuring attention toward specific aspects of the environment is a key means through which organizations shift their strategic agendas. However, research has often overlooked the fact that new technologies, at their onset, are often ambiguous, making it difficult for organizations to determine appropriate structures. Adaptation, in this way, is partly dependent on cues from environment to draw organizational attention. Novelty, as a characteristic of an issue, is theorized as a critical but complicated factor in reshaping the strategic agendas of organizations. Novel issues are more likely to draw the attention of decision-makers and shift strategic agendas yet also lack legitimacy due to their novelty, which may impede a strategic shift. In examining 15 years of data for 36 incumbent financial services organizations, I find that organizations respond to the ambiguity of FinTech differently. Louder voices for novel issues draws in the attention of organizations to shift agendas; however, the technological experience of top managers dampens this effect when FinTech is considered as a technology. When FinTech is considered as a market-oriented issue targeting a business unit, it is the legitimation of FinTech that matters most in shifting strategic agendas. Topic modeling and mixed-effects models are empirically used to both identify the ambiguity of FinTech and support these findings.