Anthropic Moves Deeper into Financial Services with Claude for Advisors

Move over, X. This might be the real everything app.

Anthropic released Claude for Financial Advisors yesterday, a suite of AI tools designed to help wealth managers with research, portfolio oversight, administrative tasks and more. Essentially, it’s an AI layer that connects Claude to the disparate programs and tools advisors already use, including platforms and data providers from BlackRock to Charles Schwab, Addepar, Envestnet, iCapital, Orion, Wealthbox, Wealth.com and Zocks.

The launch marks the latest move from Anthropic to embed itself in the financial services industry. Earlier this year, the company released 10 AI agents designed for financial workflows, including building pitchbooks, screening Know Your Customer (KYC) files maintained for compliance and reviewing financial statements. Major institutions including Goldman Sachs and Citi have deployed the technology across their operations.

All Aboard

Charles Schwab will be the platform’s debut custodian, and it aims to bring Claude for Financial Advisors to the more than 16,000 RIAs it serves. “Anthropic is building AI at the frontier of what’s possible,” Jon Beatty, head of Schwab Advisor Services, said in a statement. “Bringing this solution directly to our clients, purpose-built for the environment they operate in, is how we help advisors claim the next frontier of advice.”

Anthropic’s statement announcing the new product included a whopping 18 comments from a who’s who of wealth management. “I don’t want my CFPs spending hours every week laboring over CRM updates and task assignments,” said Josh Brown, CEO of Ritholtz. “I want them talking to clients and engaged in the planning itself, because that’s the part clients truly value.” Dynasty Financial Partners CEO Shirl Penney said, “This is the moment the industry stops adapting to AI and starts running on it.”

If You Build It, They Will Come. Anthropic isn’t alone in its Wall Street pursuits. Just last week, OpenAI released ChatGPT for Financial Services, which caters to investment bankers and equity researchers. And it’s no mystery why AI firms are increasingly cozying up to wealth management firms: They spend a lot of money on building out their AI capabilities, and they plan on spending even more. Cerulli expects AI spending per firm to reach nearly $500,000 this year, more than double last year’s total.

In the here and now, meanwhile, Monday’s announcement was nothing if not timely. Anthropic is no doubt eager to remind people of the benefits of artificial intelligence after a spree of headlines warning that unfettered development of the technology may pose an existential threat to the human race.