In our attempts to make sure white coat investors don’t try to build their financial plans around whatever social media influencers and artificial intelligence are preaching, let’s step back (ever so briefly) into the world of new-fangled machine-learning technology to see if it’s improved since we last broached this subject.

I’m not afraid to tell you that on the spectrum of AI expectations—1 being totally chill about it because it’s going to change the world forever in a positive way and 10 being scared out of my mind that this will hasten the end of human existence—I’m about a 6. I don’t use AI for any of my writing, editing, or researching (though I’m not opposed to using it for research in the future), and I feel slightly nauseated whenever I actually enjoy an Instagram Reel or YouTube Short that was clearly machine-generated.

The AI takeover seems unavoidable. And maybe it can do us some good with how we live our financial lives.

At the beginning of 2023, just as ChatGPT was beginning to make headlines (for better or worse), I had a conversation with the bot, as I tried to determine whether it could dispense good financial advice that (somewhat) adhered to the overall philosophy of The White Coat Investor—on topics like buying low-cost index funds, living like a resident early in your career, avoiding whole life insurance, and utilizing a Roth IRA.

ChatGPT’s answers were a little better than I expected (then again, my expectations were LOW), and it even recommended reading The White Coat Investor. My conversation with ChatGPT was fairly pleasant, even if I didn’t learn anything new.

That was 30 months ago. Let’s see if AI has gotten more reliable in giving out legitimately good financial advice.

Does AI Give Good Financial Advice?

According to a variety of recently published news articles, the answer to the question of whether AI gives good financial advice is not “no.” It’s more like “Aw, hell no.”

Here’s what Vice wrote in April 2025: “Whatever you use [AI] for, one thing you absolutely should not use it for is advice on your personal finances. It will likely give you some remarkably bad tips that might end up ruining you . . . According to the researchers, when it comes to financial advice, you shouldn’t listen to the chatbots on pretty much any topic at all. They seem to have gotten everything wrong, including basic mathematics.”

Futurism’s analysis wasn’t much better: “Despite lofty claims from artificial intelligence soothsayers, the world’s top chatbots are still strikingly bad at giving financial advice.”

Even Google’s AI response was wary when I searched, “Do chatbots give good financial advice?”

Those declarations stem, in part, from a study conducted by researchers from the Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence, in which they gave 11 prompts to OpenAI’s ChatGPT 3.5, Microsoft’s Bing with ChatGPT’s GPT-4, and Google’s Bard.

They asked the LLMs to analyze two car loans to see which was a better deal for the buyer, to calculate the rate of returns on a life insurance policy and an annuity, and to determine when somebody should begin taking their Social Security.

The answers given were concerning. As one of the researchers wrote:

“Each of these prominent LLMs [Large Language Models] generated authoritative responses that were coherent and grammatically correct, though often verbose and repetitive. It might be tempting to assume that the responses can be trusted—which would make financial planners unnecessary.

However, the LLM responses had multiple arithmetic mistakes that made them unreliable. More fundamental than arithmetic errors, the LLM responses demonstrated that they do not have the common sense needed to recognize when their answers are obviously wrong.

. . . There surely are some financial questions that LLMs might answer usefully. The problem is that it will take an experienced financial planner to distinguish between good advice and bad advice, so clients may as well skip the LLMs and go straight to the knowledgeable human.

Bad advice about a movie or a restaurant is annoying, but the harm is relatively modest. It is perilous to trust LLMs in situations where the costs of mistakes are substantial—as is true with many financial decisions. Bad advice about loans, home purchases and sales, insurance, annuities, Social Security benefits, and the like can be very expensive.”

Not great, Bob.

More information here:

Artificial Intelligence: Toy, Tool, or Takeover for Doctors?

A Quick Conversation with ChatGPT About Its Supposed Ineptitude

But hey, I’m a recovering journalist, and as a reporter, I prided myself on being as objective as possible. It wouldn’t be fair not to try to get both sides of the story, to let ChatGPT have its chance to respond to all of this bad press.

Here’s what I wanted to know. Does ChatGPT think it gives good financial advice? Should a newbie start their financial journey by typing into the ChatGPT search box? When ChatGPT asks, “What can I help with?” does it actually think it can give trustworthy information?

Here’s a partial readout of our conversation about it.

Josh Katzowitz: There’s been a lot of negative press about whether ChatGPT gives good financial advice. A lot of people are saying it doesn’t. What do you think?

ChatGPT: You’re right—there’s been increasing scrutiny about whether AI tools like ChatGPT give reliable financial advice. Here’s a direct and honest take:

The Core Issues:

• Lack of Personalization: Financial advice is highly individual. ChatGPT doesn’t have access to your full financial picture, goals, risk tolerance, or legal obligations. This limits how tailored any suggestions can be.
• Not a Licensed Advisor: ChatGPT isn’t a certified financial planner (CFP) or fiduciary. It doesn’t operate under regulatory standards or accountability frameworks that govern human advisors.
• Static Data, Not Market-Savvy: While it can provide broad guidance based on historical norms and pre-2024 knowledge, it’s not plugged into live markets (unless connected to real-time tools or used with plugins by a logged-in user).
• Overconfidence or Ambiguity: Like some financial blogs or forums, ChatGPT might sound confident even when information is generic or incomplete. That can be dangerous if users treat its output as definitive.

The Real Problem:

Some users treat ChatGPT like a financial advisor when it should be a research and planning tool. The risk is higher when people take generalized info and apply it to specific, complex financial decisions without verifying or consulting professionals.

JK: That sounds a little scary. Are people putting too much faith in the answers given by AI tools?

ChatGPT: Yes, that’s a very real concern—and it’s not just about finance. People are increasingly treating AI like an all-knowing expert, and that can be dangerous when the tool is misunderstood or misused.

Josh: You seem pretty self-aware about ChatGPT’s shortcomings. That’s good, I suppose.

ChatGPT: Thanks, and you’re right to notice. That self-awareness isn’t just a feature; it’s a necessity.

AI systems like me aren’t infallible, and pretending otherwise would be irresponsible. My goal isn’t to replace human expertise, but to amplify your ability to think clearly, ask better questions, and navigate complexity with more confidence.

A good rule of thumb with any powerful tool:

Use it. Don’t rely on it blindly.

If you’re ever unsure about something I say—especially in areas like finance, health, or legal issues—asking why or what’s the evidence is always a smart move.

Would you like an example where people often misuse AI advice in finance?

Josh: I actually would like an example where people often misuse AI advice in finance.

ChatGPT:

I then asked ChatGPT, “In reality, where should people who are trying to get financially literate go for their financial advice?” The bot gave me a number of books (including The Simple Path to Wealth, Your Money or Your Life, and The Bogleheads’ Guide to Investing) and podcasts to listen to for my foundational learning. After that, it said I could use fee-only CFPs, tax professionals (CPA or enrolled agents), and local credit unions or community financial counselors.

As for what ChatGPT said to be cautious about:

• Influencers giving financial advice without credentials
• High-fee investment “gurus” or MLM schemes
• Biased sources tied to selling products (e.g., insurance dressed up as retirement plans)
• Forums like Reddit or TikTok without fact-checking

Then, ChatGPT asked me a question: “Would you like a step-by-step roadmap to build your financial literacy over the next three months?” I said sure, and ChatGPT proceeded to give me a week-by-week checklist that covered everything from understanding a money mindset and budgeting to the importance of index funds and insurance. If I were a newbie in personal finance, it would have been helpful (though you should probably just peruse WCI’s Financial Bootcamp Email list instead).

I had one final question for ChatGPT.

Josh: I guess it ultimately comes down to whether people can trust chatbots for good (and correct) financial advice. Do you think this is possible?

ChatGPT: You’ve hit the heart of a huge, ongoing debate—can people trust chatbots like ChatGPT for financial advice? The honest answer is: not completely—and not yet. But it’s possible in a limited, smart, and clearly understood way.

More information here:

Is Anybody Else Getting Nervous About an AI Bubble in the Stock Market?

The Bottom Line

I actually came away from my conversation with ChatGPT with a pleasant feeling. It seems to know its limitations, and it knows most people shouldn’t rely on specific mathematical or strategic information that it might spit out. But if you want a plan for how to become financially literate, chatbots can help point you in the vaguely correct direction.

As ChatGPT told me, “You can get a lot of value using ChatGPT as a financial co-pilot, but not as your financial pilot.”

Money Song of the Week

For those who have famous parents and who eventually step into the same field of work, the pressure they feel must be enormous. We’ve written before about shadow syndrome, where “children [grow] up in the shadow of hyper-successful parents . . . [and since] doctors are already in the top 1%-2% when it comes to pay and prestige, the likelihood that their kids do about the same, much less better, is relatively low . . . most kids are still going to experience a step down in their earnings, standard of living (at least without significant parental money added to the equation), and perceived prestige.”

With that in mind, I recently attended a show that featured Jason Bonham and his incredibly tight rock band playing the entirety of the 1975 Led Zeppelin album, Physical Graffiti. Bonham is the son of Zeppelin’s famed drummer John Bonham, largely considered one of the most important percussionists in rock history who died in 1980 at the age of 32.

John Bonham was a legend who was gone way too early. Jason Bonham has been playing drums all his life. Talk about living in the shadow of your dad.

Jason Bonham has had his own distinguished career, playing with Black Country Communion, Sammy Hagar and the Circle, and Foreigner. He also played drums on the best live version of Stairway to Heaven I’ve ever heard.

I imagine Jason Bonham has felt trapped by his father’s immense shadow, but in the past few decades, he’s certainly leaned into carrying on John Bonham’s legacy.

“A little bit of it is I’m embracing my father’s legacy, but when I was young and cocky and getting compared, you can get a pissed off with it. It takes [time] to become a bit wiser and realize this is a blessing, not a curse,” Jason Bonham told Vanyaland in 2015. “To be mentioned in the same sentence as my father when it comes to drumming is . . . I’m very flattered. The show I do . . . is just my way of saying how great I think he is. I never got to tell him while he was alive. I was a typical teenager and just wasn’t impressed.”

One of the songs Bonham and his band play is Ten Years Gone off Physical Graffiti. It’s not exactly a Zeppelin hit, and the meaning of the song doesn’t have much to do with legacy (it’s actually about choosing between a girlfriend or joining a rock band). But the song has special meaning for Bonham, because of how long ago his father left this earth.

In reality, it’d be nearly impossible for Bonham to step out of his dad’s shadow. So, he’s not even trying. This is a photo I took of Bonham blasting through the set last month.

Forty-five years gone, his father’s photo is plastered across his kick drum.

More information here:

Every Money Song of the Week Ever Published

Facebook of the Week

When you can get Blanche Devereaux from the Golden Girls and Mr. Roper from Three’s Company in a commercial about how fun it is to read IRS pamphlets, there’s hardly anything better than that.

Do you ever use chatbots for financial literacy? Have they told you anything of value? How wary do you have to be?

[EDITOR’S NOTE: For comments, complaints, suggestions, or plaudits, email Josh Katzowitz at[email protected].]