Amid this, a new player also arrived on the scene, which unbeknownst to most of us at the time, would change our daily lives\u00a0and encourage us to rethink how we deliver advice:\u00a0ChatGPT.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
While artificial intelligence was nothing new, ChatGPT changed\u00a0AI\u2019s\u00a0accessibility,\u00a0utility\u00a0and appeal globally. It also quickly\u00a0brought AI\u00a0into the financial advice domain.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0been\u00a0reported\u00a0clients are now using AI to\u00a0scrutinise\u00a0the advice they receive, which on one hand can\u00a0prompt new, interesting questions, but on another, highlights that technology can lack the judgment and nuance a human adviser can offer.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
To date,\u00a0many of the advances\u00a0we\u2019ve\u00a0seen have been on the productivity front, reinforcing that\u00a0AI can make the business of advice more efficient, but\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0replace human judgment. Practices have replaced other technology with AI-driven systems, employed AI to take notes, communicate with\u00a0clients\u00a0and prepare Statements of Advice.\u00a0Our 2025 advice efficiency survey showed that 43\u00a0per cent\u00a0of\u00a0practices\u00a0are actively using AI within their advice journey,\u00a0predominantly for\u00a0personalisation (53\u00a0per cent), data analysis (28\u00a0per cent)\u00a0and compliance (15\u00a0per cent).\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, these\u00a0applications are expected to rapidly expand in the coming year.\u00a0As we mark ChatGPT\u2019s third birthday and consider\u00a0how\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0changed the advice landscape, I put together some reflections on where\u00a0to keep an eye on\u00a0next,\u00a0based on insights\u00a0from my\u00a0network\u00a0of\u00a030,000 global\u00a0intelliflo\u00a0users.\u00a0While much of what AI delivers advisers is revolutionary in positive ways, my experience with advisers in the UK has shown\u00a0there are also areas to watch as the technology rapidly develops.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Beware the\u00a0peril of free\/ungated\u00a0AI\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
As the adviser, you\u00a0are responsible for\u00a0your client\u2019s data, which can\u00a0often\u00a0be extremely sensitive.\u00a0You\u2019re\u00a0the gatekeeper of information about your client\u2019s wealth snapshot and their broader family dynamics.\u00a0The vast majority of\u00a0advisers take this responsibility seriously.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
However,\u00a0if\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0letting the data out the front door through a broad market AI solution, there may be consequences that\u00a0haven\u2019t\u00a0yet fully been seen.\u00a0Public models\u00a0frequently\u00a0learn from user inputs,\u00a0store data in ways that advisers cannot audit or\u00a0operate\u00a0in\u00a0jurisdictions\u00a0outside regulatory protection.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0the potential for data to be weaponised, exposing the\u00a0client to risk and the practice to reputational and legal damage.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
To reduce these risks,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0critical advisers and practices use trusted, gated AI applications\u00a0to ensure their clients\u2019\u00a0data is protected.\u00a0We\u00a0haven\u2019t\u00a0yet seen the legal precedents of\u00a0sensitive advice\u00a0data being\u00a0leaked\u00a0or compromised, but\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0becoming a bigger conversation in the UK market.\u00a0Simply put,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not a risk worth taking.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Small errors\u00a0may\u00a0have big consequences\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0Globally, millions of people are now using AI as part of their\u00a0advice process, whether through an adviser or\u00a0on\u00a0their own personal finance journey.\u00a0The elephant in the room is: what if AI gets it wrong?\u00a0Given AI is still in its infancy,\u00a0we are\u00a0yet to see these consequences play out, but as advisers know, a small calculation error can significantly affect retirement outcomes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0Firms in the UK have expressed concerns that AI could\u00a0come up with\u00a0the wrong solutions and\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0a fair worry.\u00a0They\u2019re\u00a0also concerned that AI\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0give the same\u00a0answer every time. These insights contributed to our decision to steer away from\u00a0a black box model\u00a0in\u00a0our new Advice Assistant and instead\u00a0create a rules-based\u00a0engine, where\u00a0advisers can\u00a0configure their own house rules.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0Nonetheless,\u00a0I believe the\u00a0question of accuracy will be magnified in\u00a02026.\u00a0Given advisers\u2019 experience and\u00a0rigour\u00a0in producing defensible advice, the much\u00a0greater risk of\u00a0error\u00a0relates to\u00a0people relying on financial influencers\u00a0through TikTok or a bot to build and protect their personal finances.\u00a0While younger generations have high financial literacy, without a\u00a0highly trained\u00a0adviser, they\u00a0are unlikely to\u00a0apply the same level of\u00a0scrutiny\u00a0to\u00a0advice they receive online.\u00a0It underscores the urgency for regulated advisers\u00a0remaining\u00a0visible,\u00a0accessible\u00a0and technology-enabled, which gives end consumers the\u00a0option\u00a0to\u00a0receive\u00a0trustworthy\u00a0advice.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0For advisers,\u00a0the question of\u00a0potential\u00a0mistakes also\u00a0reinforces the importance of\u00a0trusting your experience and\u00a0expertise, using\u00a0well-validated AI tools and\u00a0cross-checking AI\u2019s insights.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The compliance and regulatory question mark\u00a0<\/p>\n
The finfluencer-driven,\u00a0mass market\u00a0advice\u00a0explosion\u00a0also\u00a0leads to\u00a0a bigger question about\u00a0how the compliance and regulatory goal posts will shift.\u00a0Whose responsibility\u00a0is it\u00a0to protect consumers from (potentially) bad advice when the gates are open? I believe\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0partly a societal and partly a governmental responsibility.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the UK, our regulator \u2013 the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0is\u00a0very open\u00a0to AI innovation, but of course,\u00a0our advisers\u00a0have to\u00a0show a record of defensible advice, much like in the Australian market.\u00a0As\u00a0AI develops further, explainability will become\u00a0a\u00a0more\u00a0central concern.\u00a0Best practice will hinge on advisers\u00a0harnessing their data and being able to produce an auditable trail of\u00a0how advice was produced, for\u00a0both their clients and regulators.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Again, this\u00a0all\u00a0comes back to having technology partners that\u00a0are trusted\u00a0and have proved\u00a0their reliability, which\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0always easy given the pace of change.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
In 2026, AI will continue to deliver enormous benefits to advisers in Australia, but as it advances, it will also reinforce\u00a0how essential\u00a0human-based\u00a0advice\u00a0is.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nick\u00a0Eatock\u00a0is the co-founder and CEO of\u00a0intelliflo.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Amid this, a new player also arrived on the scene, which unbeknownst to most of us at the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":509576,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[256,254,255,64,63,105],"class_list":["post-509575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-artificial-intelligence","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-artificialintelligence","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/509575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=509575"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/509575\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/509576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=509575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=509575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=509575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}