AI is now a must-have tool for wealth managers, reinforcing their need for capital to pay for it.

Evidence of how far AI is penetrating business and investment life has come from a BNY survey, published this month, showing that more than half (54 per cent) of 251 UHNW investors it polled around the world use the technology to decide financial matters, and 89 per cent invest in firms with significant AI exposure.

At a personal level, 96 per cent use AI at least once a week and 67 per cent use it at least 10 times a week, the report said. The BNY Wealth study – entitled Insights On AI-Forward Investing – is part of the group’ Intelligent Investor series.

The study highlights that AI usage has gone mainstream rapidly. As recently as last week, to give one example, Rockefeller Capital Management said it was building an AI-enabled platform for wealth management with Anthropic’s AI Claude model. The report also demonstrates how wealthy clients’ use of AI raises challenges – and opportunities – for their advisors, as discussed here.

One takeaway from the report is that AI is now a must-have tool for wealth managers, reinforcing their need for capital to pay for it – explaining why private equity and other sources of capital continue to flow into the industry, as discussed here.

“Since ChatGPT’s debut in late 2022, AI has moved from novelty to mainstream, becoming embedded in how people communicate, research and organise their work. The same holds true for UHNW individuals, where adoption is now virtually universal. Notably, AI use in financial decision-making is strongest among higher wealth investors,” the 28-page report said. 

In their professional lives, the survey showed that 71 per cent of those polled use AI for “data analytics,” 63 per cent for “technology,” and 52 per cent for “marketing or content creation.”

In its findings on personal use cases for AI, the BNY study found that the largest use case, at 78 per cent, is “general information or problem solving,” followed by 65 per cent for “communications” (such as summarising emails); 62 per cent for “investing and financial research.” and 60 per cent for “data analysis.”

Other uses include: “education and skill development”; “task automation”; “travel and itinerary planning”; “health and wellness tracking”; and security or fraud monitoring.”

In other findings, 85 per cent of UHNW individuals report being “extremely or very familiar” with AI.

“UHNW investors aren’t just comfortable with AI – they are confident. Nearly two-thirds rate their proficiency as 'expert’ or 'advanced’, and 14 per cent go further, indicating that they have the expertise to build or configure AI solutions,” it said. 

Strikingly, in its questions about AI usage, the report showed that only 8 per cent of UHNW individuals it polled “never” use AI, and only 9 per cent use it “rarely.”

Although UHNW individuals want to use AI in the investment process, the survey found that they still expect a human “in the loop.”

“An overwhelming 94 per cent believe AI is most effective when paired with human judgment. They look to wealth advisors for what AI alone cannot provide: strategic direction, accountability and clear explanations of why and how decisions are made,” the report said.