Orion Advisor Solutions, one of the largest technology providers for wealth management, isn’t waiting for the controversy around ChatGPT to die down before taking advantage of its capabilities.
It’s using OpenAI’s ChatGPT to respond to requests for proposals, refine marketing material, compare portfolios, write new code for its website, and help employees navigate difficult conversations. It’s also integrating the app with Redtail Technology’s text messaging platform, called Redtail Speak. Orion bought the popular client relationship management software company in a deal announced last year.
Brian McLaughlin, president of Orion Advisor Tech and founder of Redtail, told RIA Intel that over the next 60 days Orion plans to release four or five more ChatGPT integrations, including one on sentiment analysis and another on activity generation. So far, the company has only pursued integrations with ChatGPT’s chat function. But it also has plans to integrate with ChatGPT’s search engine.
Unlike many firms in the financial industry, the company, which provides performance reporting, modeling, trading, billing and other services, is not shying away from the controversial technology. Orion, which announced how it’s using ChatGPT at its 2023 Ascent Conference this week, told RIA Intel that more integrations are on the way.
Artificial intelligence is not new to wealth management, almost all advisors have said that their firms have taken steps to implement AI strategies. Many companies in wealth management use AI to extract and analyze data, help with lead generation, or pre-populate forms.
“What we didn’t have though was this way for you to ask the AI questions and see what you come back with, that is what ChatGPT revolutionized. They said, ‘Here’s a search box, ask me anything. And I’ll remember what you asked me.’ That didn’t exist six years ago,” said McLaughlin.
With Orion, ChatGPT’s technology can help advisors draft emails, write proposals, and generate responses to client questions. “The efficiency gains are massive,” McLaughlin said. “Normally we would spend an hour formulating the draft. Now, it’s just a couple of clicks.”
A survey released yesterday by Orion found that the highest percentage of respondents (22 percent) saw artificial intelligence and machine learning as the most disruptive tech trend.
ChapGPT is continuing to generate a buzz, from a potential disruptor to search engines to the recent announcements by Instacart, Shopify, and Snap that the companies were integrating with the chatbot. In January, two months after it launched, ChatGPT had an estimated 100 million active users.
McLaughlin agrees that the software is disruptive but said advisors shouldn’t worry it is going to take away their jobs. It’s just going to make being a financial advisor easier. “It’s assistive technology,” McLaughlin said.
