As more Americans say they’d rather go to ChatGPT for their financial advice, a growing number of aging investors believe they’ll use artificial intelligence (AI) for their entire wellbeing needs.
The annual Nationwide Retirement Institute Long-Term Care survey, conducted in partnership with LIMRA, found Americans are increasingly relying on AI tools for day-to-day tasks, physical safety, and medical history. Forty-eight percent of Americans said they would share their medical history with AI tools to help support their care needs, and 68% said they would use such tools to alert family and friends of physical dangers.
As a response to the increasing acceptance, Nationwide said it is testing eldercare robots in homes of select policyholders with mobility issues.
“We are considering AI and robotics as potential solutions for this and are identifying if eldercare robots could become credible, compelling examples of extraordinary care for our members,” said Holly Snyder, president of Nationwide’s Life Insurance business, in a statement. “As we continue to see advancements in AI and an uptick in consumer adoption, AI and robotics could permanently change how people receive their long-term care and provide them with more opportunity to safely remain independent for longer.”
SEC alerts investors on AI tech
Nationwide’s survey and recent announcement come at a time when regulators warn of potential risks with AI technology. Earlier this month, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler expressed concerns with AI’s impact to financial markets during a speech at the National Press Club, adding that advancements in the technology could sway institutions to rely on it.
Specifically, Gensler warned that if AI models were to dominate the industry and provide inaccurate information, the same institutions who rely on the technology may use the mistaken data. Because every institution would use the same model, there would be no room for skepticism or doubt—potentially leading these institutions to accidentally create a financial crisis.
“AI may heighten financial fragility as it could promote herding with individual actors making similar decisions because they are getting the same signal from a base model or data aggregator,” Gensler warned in his speech. “This could encourage monocultures. It also could exacerbate the inherent network interconnectedness of the global financial system.”
Americans continue to place interest in AI
Despite warnings, American investors still increasingly show fascination in AI technologies, and especially when it comes to their financial and retirement planning.
A previous survey from the Nationwide Retirement Institute found that 31% of respondents—including 37% of Generation Z workers, 43% of Millennials, and 19% of Baby Boomers—expect AI tools to offer stronger financial advice than a professional in the coming years.
Furthermore, 25% of investors surveyed said they trust financial advice provided by ChatGPT and other AI chatbots.
Yet even though some prefer the models, others note how its lack of connectivity and reliability deter them from the tools. Nationwide’s previous survey noted that many respondents still do not trust (43%) or are unsure (33%) whether they can rely on AI or not. Plus, 35% disagree that ChatGPT will someday offer better financial advice, while 34% are unsure if it will.
Ultimately, Nationwide remarks that human professionals still hold stake when it comes to retirement advice. For example, 51% of respondents in Nationwide’s recent research say it is important that a financial professional discuss long-term care costs with them, and 30% say they would discuss these matters with an advisor in the future.
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