You Won't Always Have a Calculator

Hi there.

I’ve spent nearly 15 years answering questions people are starting to just type into a chatbot. Am I worried? 

AI is groundbreaking technology, and it’s opening up so many new opportunities and exciting avenues for people and businesses alike. 

Fifty years ago, when you needed an answer you had to ask an expert or go to a library. Thirty years ago you could Ask Jeeves. Fifteen years ago Google had all the answers. Now, your favorite LLM (Large Language Model) is there to help. As time went on, getting answers to your questions became faster and more efficient. (Though I’ve gotten more than a few confidently wrong answers.) 

The math is getting easier too – in fact, it’s becoming free. Research, fund selection, asset allocation, future value calculations, run-the-numbers computations… as a proud nerd, it’s a dream come true. 

My point is, while getting the answers you seek is faster and easier than ever before, I suspect that we are still years from getting the questions that you need to ask. A model just answers the question you prompt it with, and it has no knowledge of what you left out. Unless you tell it, it doesn’t know that your dream is to retire early while sending your daughter to college or that there’s tension between you and your spouse over a new job.

The financial industry as a whole will shift considerably over the next 10 years. There are more and more people that will be turning to AI for their financial planning needs, whether that be portfolio management or fund selection. And I want to be clear, I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. I do think more and more people will be looking for expert advice on what they’ve got planned, and they won’t be able to get that advice in the traditional way. 

This is a new age for DIYers and self-managers. There are countless tools that can help build out a really strong framework, even a full financial plan. There will be many potential clients that won’t pay for advice since the dawn of AI. I think being afraid of that is like being afraid whenever someone publishes a book about smart-investing. 

When I grew up, people always said you had to know the math because you won’t always have a calculator. Despite a supercomputer in my pocket, it hasn’t changed the fact that I need to know how the math works to do my job. 

So, in answer to my own question: no, I’m not worried. 

Until next time, God Bless.

Ian