Can AI Outperform A Wealth Manager At Picking Investments?

Platforms such as ChatGPT can do comprehensive research for low cost but strategies may be found wanting without critical human expert oversight.

When technology entrepreneur Edward Morris participated in the $5bn initial public offering of chip designer Arm last September, he adopted an entirely artificial intelligence-based strategy that would result in one of his most profitable investments to date.

Morris — who runs the consultancy Enigmatica, specialising in AI and prompt engineering (the creation of chatbot inputs that return the most desirable answers) — says he conducted all the necessary due diligence on his investment using the popular AI-powered virtual assistant ChatGPT and made a 30 per cent return. He typically closes out at 10 per cent.

In the past, Morris might have asked a human financial adviser to help with his investment activities.But, he considers these services “incredibly expensive” and, seeing first-hand the advancement of AI over the past few years, he was keen to try a new approach.

He has no regrets. Morris claims that the chatbot — while, essentially, only a text generator — can improve his understanding of complex wealth management and finance topics, helps him find worthy investments such as the 2023 ARM listing and identifies discrepancies in his bank statements, just like a human financial adviser would.

Additionally, Morris has linked AI tools to his WhatsApp and Telegram accounts so that he is alerted to investment opportunities via text message. Morris adds: “ChatGPT has given me a financial adviser in my pocket at all times that I can talk to and get advice from.”

Simplifying the due diligence process Reflecting on his ARM investment, Morris says that the way he uses AI in his investments is “unbelievably simple”. He says his first step is to find an investable stock. Then, he undertakes due diligence by firing questions to ChatGPT about the company’s history, current activities, financials and any negative press.[…]