Four in ten people in the UK are already using AI for financial advice. That alone tells us something important: consumers are curious, hopeful — and in some cases, desperate — for help navigating their finances.
But here’s the truth: ChatGPT won’t make you wealthy. It was never designed to. These systems are built to please, not to challenge; to generate plausible answers, not necessarily the right ones.
Think of it as the smooth talker at your local pub — entertaining on almost any topic, but not someone you’d entrust with your life savings.
And yet, the need for better guidance and support is enormous.
Over the past 20 years, personal finance has been democratised. Anyone can now download an app and start investing in minutes. That’s a big step forward.
Advice isn’t about clever answers. It’s about consistent, regulated processes that deliver good outcomes
But access without guidance isn’t enough. Ninety-two per cent of people still don’t receive professional financial advice. The vast majority are left to navigate complex choices about pensions, Isas and investments on their own.
When generic AI enters that mix — confident, persuasive, but missing vital context — the risks grow. A good financial adviser doesn’t just answer questions. They listen, probe and challenge.
If you mention taking your mother away for her 85th birthday, a good adviser recognises a need for an inheritance planning conversation. ChatGPT won’t.
Advice isn’t about clever answers. It’s about consistent, regulated processes that deliver good outcomes for customers — exactly as the FCA’s Consumer Duty requires.
These models can ace maths tests, then insist 9.11 is larger than 9.9. They can optimise a spreadsheet if you know the right prompts — but would every consumer know when to push back, when to ask again, when to stop? Probably not.
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As Cassie Kozyrkov, Google’s former chief decision scientist, has said: the problem with genies isn’t whether they can grant wishes, it’s whether you’re careful enough with what you ask. That’s not a system to entrust with your financial future.
This is where the opportunity lies. If we combine AI with expert oversight, regulation and a mission-led focus on outcomes, we can do something extraordinary: close the advice gap at scale. At Moneybox, that’s exactly what we’ve been building.
Staying true to our mission to give everyone the means to get more out of life, we’ve unveiled Aurora — our new expert-led, AI-powered engine designed to help people make smarter, more confident choices with their money.
Aurora combines human expertise with the latest advancements in technology to deliver tailored financial guidance at scale. Developed over two years with transparency and oversight built in, it reflects our commitment to using AI responsibly to deliver outcomes customers can trust.
If we combine AI with expert oversight, regulation and a mission-led focus on outcomes, we can do something extraordinary
The first version offers a free, personalised plan based on a customer’s financial ambitions, with actionable steps and helpful nudges to keep them on track.
A beta version launches this week to some existing customers. Future updates will expand Aurora with new tools, personalised content and access to coaches — creating a simple but powerful way for people to feel more confident about their financial futures.
If we get this right, the prize is enormous:
- 20 million people gaining access to personalised guidance long out of reach.
- Fewer people forced to rely solely on the state pension.
- Up to £142bn unlocked for the economy as consumers make more confident decisions.
- Most importantly, more people in control of their money — confident the decisions they make today will bring them closer to the future they want.
We are at a once-in-a-generation inflection point for financial services. While ChatGPT won’t make you wealthy, expert-led AI, designed for personal finance and regulated for consumer outcomes just might.
Brian Byrnes is head of personal finance at Moneybox
