Money & Technology | Volume 1 • No. 1
AI has its eye on your money. Not long ago the biggest AI unlocks were thought to be vibe coding, graphic design, and building PowerPoint decks. Now? AI companies are racing to make artificial intelligence your next financial advisor. But your next financial mistake might be trusting it too much. OpenAI announced eligible U.S. users can connect financial accounts to ChatGPT to manage their money. Robinhood has gone a step further, allowing customers to connect AI agents to dedicated investment accounts that can analyze portfolios, build strategies, and place trades.
The pitch is interesting because it sounds like financial freedom: Give AI access to your financial information and let it do the rest.
But I think we’re moving too fast. In the words of the R&B artist, Usher, “I just want to take it nice and slow”. The real question isn’t whether you should use AI with your finances, it’s how much control you should give it.
The Next Frontier
The AI revolution isn’t as new as the marketing suggests. Technology has been quietly working behind the scenes with your money for years. Budgeting platforms, such as Mint and Rocket Money, have categorized transactions and made recommendations for users based on spending data. Brokerage firms automate portfolios and offer investing advice via robo-advisors.
What’s changed? Instead of simply categorizing your $7 Starbucks purchase as “dining,” AI can tell you how much you’ve spent on coffee this year and project what would happen if you redirected that money toward your investment account.
But there’s an important distinction between AI helping you to make a decision and AI making the decision for you.
Asking AI whether you can afford a $5,000 vacation is fundamentally different from giving an AI agent permission to move $5,000 from your savings account. And perhaps most concerning, what happens when AI starts making financial decisions for you without your permission?
The moment AI moves from advising you to acting for you, the stakes change. And that’s where I think consumers should pump the brakes.
I’m not anti-AI. I’m anti-give-the-robot-your-password-and-hope-for-the-best. I’m against connecting your money to AI before we understand exactly what we’re giving up. Your financial information is some of the most valuable data you own and it tells a remarkably intimate story about your life. No technology company is immune from risk. Similar to banks, retailers, government agencies, and even hospitals wherever personal data is stored the more interested hackers are in getting to it. The more places your financial identity lives, the larger your attack surface becomes.
That’s why I’m suggesting to take a wait-and-see approach. Eventually, connecting your financial accounts to AI may be as normal as mobile banking. Today, I’m not convinced the perceived benefits outweigh the risks.
What This Means for Your Money
AI doesn’t need your bank account password to improve your finances. You need to give AI enough information to understand your behavior. Your behavior, not your bank balance, is what ultimately determines where your money goes. AI can help us examine our spending decisions without the emotional baggage we bring to the decision making process.
Ultimately, AI’s greatest value will not be knowing more about your money but helping you better understand what you’re doing with it.
AI can become your financial coach, something most people have never had access to. For the first time, almost anyone with a smartphone or computer has access to an on-demand financial thinking partner.
Here are some practical ways to leverage AI with your finances without giving an AI assistant your passwords.
1. Start with your budget.
Upload your budget spreadsheet to an AI assistant (remove any account numbers and other sensitive information) and ask AI to analyze it using these prompts:
“What areas am I overspending on based on my income?”
“What could I cut to free up $500 a month without materially changing my quality of life?”
“Here are my five financial goals and priorities for this year. Does my budget reflect this? If not, build me a budget that does.”
2. Let AI challenge your spending decisions.
This works particularly well for expensive items and larger purchases where emotion can overpower arithmetic. Before a major purchase, ask an AI assistant:
“Make the strongest argument against this purchase.”
“Based on my financial goals for this year, is this a smart purchase?”
“What will this purchase cost me in lost investment growth over 10 years?”
3. Use AI to understand your spending, not just track it.
Export three months of debit and credit card activity into a spreadsheet and upload it to your AI assistant. (Remove account numbers and personal information). Try the following prompts:
“Where is lifestyle inflation quietly taking over?”
“What would yield the biggest impact to me if I eliminated it from my spending”
“Where am I leaking money without realizing it?”
“What spending patterns would concern a financial advisor?”
The Bottom Line
Every generation gets a technology that changes how they manage money. AI’s biggest contribution may not be automating our finances. It may be democratizing financial advice.
For decades, the wealthy hired financial advisors, accountants, and set up family offices to help their decisions. Now everyone has access to “a family office” that doesn’t require a billion dollar net worth to hire.
Most people assume AI needs direct access to their checking account before it can provide meaningful advice. It doesn’t. In fact, I’d argue it shouldn’t. Eventually, connecting financial accounts to AI platforms may become commonplace. Today, the benefits simply don’t outweigh the risks.
When it comes to your money, don’t let AI take the wheel just yet, but let it help with the GPS navigation.
About the Author: Femi F. is the Founder of Hustle & Finance and a personal finance expert. He is a disciplined student of markets, money habits, and long-term wealth creation. Femi combines institutional-level market expertise with a culturally relevant, real-world approach to wealth building. His principals are based on living your best life today, while managing your money responsibly for tomorrow.
Disclaimer: This article is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. The views expressed are solely the author’s opinions and are not recommendations to buy, sell, borrow, invest, or take any specific financial action. Financial decisions should be made based on your individual circumstances, risk tolerance, and consultation with a qualified professional. Readers are solely responsible for any actions or decisions they take based on this content. Neither the author nor the platform assumes any liability for losses, damages, or outcomes resulting from the use or application of any information, opinions, or strategies discussed.
This was a great topic, and I really appreciate the tangible ways you shared to use AI to help meet financial goals. I’m curious about the security risks and implications of connecting AI to your financial accounts. The risk of an error is one thing, but what about the potential for hacking or a data breach? That would be a major concern for me.
Also, I copied and pasted the prompts! Great recommendation.