What’s the Future of AI in Financial Advice?

The flux capacitor is operational. We just need enough runway to hit 88 miles per hour.

The year 2030 isn’t far off — although it’s 15 years past where Doc Brown and Marty McFly travelled in “Back to the Future Part II” — but a lot can change by then. The CFP Board revved up its DeLoreans in a recent report and outlined a handful of possible scenarios for AI’s transformation of financial advice over the next four years. Whether trust in AI grows or fades, the human elements of financial planning will become even more essential.

“The best way to understand AI is to use it,” said CFP Board Chair Liz Miller, adding that the most competitive advisors will showcase their expertise in areas such as tax, estate, insurance planning as well as the psychology of financial planning. While advisors do not need to worry about being replaced with AI, new competencies in the tech are required, she told Advisor Upside.

Great Scott!

In the first scenario, AI becomes a planner’s indispensable co-pilot, much like it is today but far more capable. Tasks such as client onboarding, portfolio management, complex risk modeling and compliance checks become faster and more accurate, allowing advisors to focus on client relationships. 

The second scenario imagines AI assistants woven into every aspect of daily life: financial, personal, social and professional. Advisors who fail to integrate these tools risk being pushed out, while the most successful wealth managers are those who complement AI rather than compete with it, acting as interpreters between powerful tech and clients seeking clarity.

This is Heavy, Doc. But the future may not be fully AI-friendly. In a third scenario, trust in AI erodes after AI robo-advisors touted as the next big thing fail to adapt to sudden market shocks such as unexpected Federal Reserve rate cuts, causing double-digit losses for clients. Regulators respond with tighter rules on AI-driven advice, prompting Big Tech and fintech firms to retreat. Demand for human guidance surges, but the workforce struggles, especially after the number of CFPs falls 30% from 2025 amid fears of AI-driven disruption.

The final scenario places Silicon Valley at the center of Wall Street. Younger investors flock to tech-first advisory systems, disrupting traditional networks long dominated by banks and wirehouses. But when a global recession and political instability send AI-powered financial engines into chaos, confidence collapses and investors once again turn to human advisors to navigate uncertainty.

“Three imperatives showed up so strongly in every single scenario: Oversight of AI is essential, trust in financial planners is central and the future revolves around evolution over disruption,” Miller said.