In a groundbreaking move that signals the beginning of the generative AI era on Wall Street, Morgan Stanley has officially unveiled its highly-anticipated assistant powered by OpenAI’s latest generative AI software. The bank is set to announce that the assistant, called the AI @ Morgan Stanley Assistant, is now “fully live” for all financial advisors and their support staff, offering a range of benefits that will revolutionize client interactions and enhance advisor practices.
Highlighting the bank’s commitment to its financial advisors, Morgan Stanley’s co-President, Andy Saperstein, stated in a memo that “financial advisors will always be the center of Morgan Stanley wealth management’s universe.” While recognizing the role of generative AI in transforming client interactions, Saperstein emphasized the importance of utilizing this technology to augment advisors’ capabilities and enable them to better serve their clients.
The AI @ Morgan Stanley Assistant is designed to provide financial advisors with quick and easy access to the bank’s extensive “intellectual capital.” This database includes over 100,000 research reports and documents, enabling advisors to stay up-to-date with market trends and make informed recommendations. By streamlining the process of retrieving information and answering internal questions, the assistant frees up valuable time for advisors to focus on building meaningful relationships with their clients.
Creating a program that consistently produces high-quality responses requires meticulous curation and testing. Morgan Stanley invested significant time and effort into curating the documents used by the AI @ Morgan Stanley Assistant and relied on human experts to test the system’s responses. This attention to detail ensures that advisors receive reliable and accurate information, despite the seemingly simplistic interface of the tool.
Financial advisors using the AI @ Morgan Stanley Assistant will need to adjust their query approach. Rather than relying on keywords as they would in a traditional search engine, advisors are required to phrase their questions in full sentences, mimicking a conversation with a human. This shift in querying technology aims to enhance the natural and intuitive communication between advisors and the AI assistant.
The introduction of the AI @ Morgan Stanley Assistant is just the beginning of Morgan Stanley’s transformative journey with generative AI. According to Jeff McMillan, head of analytics, data, and innovation at Morgan Stanley wealth management, the firm is also piloting another tool called Debrief. This tool automatically summarizes the content of client meetings and generates follow-up emails, further optimizing advisor efficiency and communication.
Morgan Stanley’s adoption of OpenAI’s ChatGPT represents a paradigm shift in problem-solving approaches. The traditional method of writing code has been replaced by providing examples of what constitutes a “good” response, allowing the system to learn and apply logical reasoning akin to human cognition. This shift demonstrates the immense potential of generative AI in transforming the financial industry and beyond.
The rapid advancement and adoption of AI technology have created an atmosphere of excitement across the stock market. Experts declare AI as the next foundational technology, with its implications permeating various industries. Jeff McMillan, an industry veteran with over 20 years of experience in artificial intelligence, expressed his awe at the current AI landscape, stating, “I’ve never seen anything like this in my career.”
Morgan Stanley’s launch of the AI @ Morgan Stanley Assistant represents a significant milestone in the generative AI era on Wall Street. By embracing the power of AI, the bank aims to enhance the capabilities of its financial advisors, revolutionize client interactions, and unlock new levels of efficiency and expertise. This development is only the beginning, as Morgan Stanley continues to explore the vast possibilities of generative AI technology.