Are We Actually Building the AI Financial Experiences that Consumers Want?

Consumers are already using AI in their financial lives. That’s the reality our CEO Tomas Campos shared at FinovateFall 2026 last week. 

In fact, OpenAI reports more than 200 million people use ChatGPT for personal finance per month. And, our own research echos this — nearly half said yes in some form when asked if they have ever used an AI tool like ChatGPT or Claude to help manage their personal finances. 

What’s more, they increasingly trust AI to give them accurate information, make recommendations about their finances, and even take various finance actions on their behalf.  

So, instead of continuing to ask if consumers want or trust AI, there's another question we should be asking: 

Are we actually building the AI experiences consumers want?

The financial system has become incredibly sophisticated but the consumer experience — particularly when it comes to credit — is still remarkably fragmented. AI is an opportunity to make consumer finances easier. 

Right now, we're very good at building the conversation. We're getting much better at building the intelligence. But we're still figuring out what happens between the conversation and the transaction.

Think about what we ask a consumer to do every time they want to apply for a loan.

They have to figure out what they need, find a lender, compare rates and terms, answer a long list of questions, gather documents, provide information the lender may already have somewhere else, and then wait to find out what they qualify for.

And if they are using AI to help with that decision, the experience gets even more fragmented. They can ask, “How much can I afford?” They can compare loan options. They can calculate payments. They can even ask AI to help them decide which product makes the most sense.

But then the handoff happens.

The consumer leaves the AI experience and enters a loan application. They start filling out forms, uploading documents, answering questions, and navigating a process that often has little connection to the conversation they just had in ChatGPT, Claude, or another AI tool.

The intelligence is there, but the transaction is somewhere else. We are treating AI as a layer that sits on top of the financial experience, rather than as something that can carry the consumer’s intent through it.

If a consumer has already done most of the work within an AI tool, why should they have to start over when it’s time to actually apply? 

A better AI experience could gather that intent, help the consumer understand their options, prepare the application, and carry that context into the transaction. The consumer still decides whether to apply and whether to accept the offer. But they aren't doing all the administrative work required to turn that decision into action.

There are really three things we need to get right.

1. AI needs the full financial picture. An AI assistant can't meaningfully help someone make a financial decision if it only sees one account, one loan, or one interaction.

2. AI needs to carry intent into the transaction. This is the loan application problem. Today, AI can help a consumer understand a financial product. But, at exactly the point where that decision becomes an action, the consumer gets handed back to a completely different experience.

3. Consumers need control over what happens next. A good copilot doesn't grab the wheel every time something happens. But a good copilot also doesn't sit there quietly waiting for instructions. They watch the road. They understand the destination. And they know when the driver needs to make the decision. Financial AI should work the same way.

Bottom line: Consumers want a copilot that understands where they're going, handles more of the work, and knows when to hand the wheel back.