{"text":[[{"start":6.85,"text":"Danilo McGarry highlights a problem with outsourcing your financial planning to artificial intelligence."}],[{"start":13.3,"text":"The strategic adviser on AI for the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development says that when one user asked a chatbot how to reduce their tax bill, the tool suggested a move to Monaco."}],[{"start":24.450000000000003,"text":"Though this is technically correct, it was “practically useless” for someone employed in Croydon at the time, he says."}],[{"start":31.250000000000004,"text":"The popularity of using AI tools for financial guidance has risen sharply in recent years. In the UK, some 28mn adults used AI for personal finance advice in 2025, according to Lloyds Banking Group. "}],[{"start":45.85,"text":"This week, a study by Fidelity International found AI use to be particularly concentrated among retail investors aged 18 to 34, with 36 per cent of this age group using the tech to support their investment choices, compared with 29 per cent of 35 to 54-year-olds and 5 per cent of over-55s."}],[{"start":65.55,"text":"There is certainly an argument that AI can empower people with financial knowledge they might otherwise lack. Equally, however, users should be wary of its pitfalls — or risk acting on flawed advice from a machine that is difficult to hold to account. "}],[{"start":81.14999999999999,"text":"So if you are using AI to help plan your finances, how do you avoid some costly or time-consuming mistakes? "}],[{"start":87.8,"text":"Above all, experts say, users should remember that AI is a tool, not an authority, and is thus prone to error. Specialists in AI ethics warn that the tech is more susceptible to mistakes than many people realise."}],[{"start":102.3,"text":"David Horowitz, partner at Gerald Edelman, an accountancy firm, says he has seen AI platforms calculate available contribution headroom incorrectly, for example by ignoring tapering for higher earners, missing prior year contributions or assuming that unused allowances can be carried forward without first using the current year’s allowance."}],[{"start":123.44999999999999,"text":"“On paper, the numbers can look entirely reasonable, but in practice, they can be materially wrong and potentially lead to unexpected annual allowance tax charges,” he says."}],[{"start":133.89999999999998,"text":"Being specific in your requests is also essential. While chatbots are increasingly good at prompting you for additional information, asking AI how to invest the cash in your savings account, or what products to invest in, without providing details about your income, tax position, time horizon or attitude to risk, is likely to produce answers that are poorly suited to your needs. "}],[{"start":156.09999999999997,"text":"McGarry has witnessed the potential consequences of this in real time. “I have seen someone paste a portfolio screenshot and ask, ‘should I rebalance?’, without telling the model their time horizon, risk tolerance, or that half the holdings sit inside a Sipp. "}],[{"start":171.99999999999997,"text":"“The AI happily told them to sell, which would have triggered an unnecessary tax event in the taxable portion.”"}],[{"start":178.39999999999998,"text":"This is because AI does not reason in the same way a human does. Instead, it generates plausible language based on patterns in the data sets used to train it. "}],[{"start":188.84999999999997,"text":"According to Horowitz, this can lead to outputs that, while technically reasonable in isolation, fall apart once a real-world context is considered."}],[{"start":198.29999999999995,"text":"Some platforms are undoubtedly superior to others when it comes to seeking financial advice. In November, a study by Which? ranked Perplexity, Google Gemini AIO and Gemini in the top three for accuracy, relevance and ethical responsibility. "}],[{"start":215.29999999999995,"text":"That same month, Lloyds found that ChatGPT was the AI tool primarily used for finance, with 60 per cent of those surveyed saying they had asked it for personal finance advice. "}],[{"start":226.14999999999995,"text":"But such is the pace of change in the sector, experts suspect those findings are already out of date — one notable exception from both: Anthropic’s Claude."}],[{"start":236.04999999999995,"text":"AI adviser Elle Farrell-Kingsley says: “Given Perplexity’s citation-backed sources, I think it would likely still rank similarly [in the Which? list], but especially given Claude’s user popularity . . . I think there’s a strong chance it could very well rank the highest in trust and user satisfaction.”"}],[{"start":253.49999999999994,"text":"McGarry suggests cross-checking answers across multiple models as a guard against varying levels of accuracy. In his opinion, when models agree with each other, you are more likely to be able to trust them. Instances of disagreement are where you may need to bring in a human expert."}],[{"start":269.84999999999997,"text":"But Farrell-Kingsley cautions against using AI for advanced decision-making, at least at first. In her experience, AI tools may be helpful for budgeting or understanding the basics of investing, but people often jump too quickly into using them for high-risk decisions."}],[{"start":285.79999999999995,"text":"She adds: “There’s a big gap between ‘help me track spending’ and ‘tell me what stocks to buy’. That leap is where trouble starts.”"}],[{"start":293.44999999999993,"text":"One of AI’s upsides is the relative ease with which individuals can access and use it. As with any tool, however, it takes time and practice before you can confidently use it for more complex tasks. "}],[{"start":305.69999999999993,"text":"Users also need to remember that AI is not accountable to anyone. Unlike regulated financial advisers, AI tools have no fiduciary duty to users and offer limited recourse when advice proves inaccurate. Most mainstream platforms are also not regulated financial advisers under UK law. And the Financial Conduct Authority stresses that “consumers should do their own research and check trusted sources before making financial decisions”. "}],[{"start":333.19999999999993,"text":"Furthermore, the Mills Review is examining the medium- to long-term impact of AI and how it could transform retail financial services. It will report to the FCA board this summer before publishing its findings externally."}],[{"start":346.3999999999999,"text":"The final thing to point out, experts say, is to be wary of the financial information you share with your chatbot."}],[{"start":353.3499999999999,"text":"Many forget that conversations shared with AI, far from being private, are likely to be collected and used to train large language models in the future. "}],[{"start":362.69999999999993,"text":"Farrell-Kingsley warns that free tools tend to have a “trade-off”; the price being an individual’s personal data. While working on LLMs in the past, she reports having seen highly sensitive user input, including individuals’ card and banking details."}],[{"start":379.3499999999999,"text":"So before giving AI your personal data, ask yourself: ‘Am I OK with this being made public?’ If the answer is no, you should probably re-evaluate what you choose to share."}],[{"start":397.69999999999993,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1781934527_1178.mp3"}