Jun 3, 2026
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Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how investors find opportunities, from everyday retail traders to some of Silicon Valley’s most successful venture capitalists.
Billionaire investor Tim Draper, whose early bets included Tesla, Skype and Coinbase, says AI has made him roughly 75% more productive, per Inc. At Draper Associates, AI now helps evaluate startup pitch decks, screen hundreds of applications each week and identify promising companies hidden within massive datasets.
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Draper says interns at the firm were behind adjustments that “totally changed a lot” of the company’s workflow, stating, “They show us things that we didn’t even think about.”
The Draper Associates interns found ways to use AI to complete their market research tasks — a change that he says led to better results and more time to focus on other “promising prospects”.
While most investors don’t have access to a venture capital firm’s resources, many of the same AI-powered research techniques are now available to anyone with an internet connection.
AI as the first filter for investment ideas
Draper says one of his firm’s biggest AI breakthroughs came from an intern creating a system that allows entrepreneurs to submit pitch decks and receive AI-generated feedback before a human ever reviews the proposal.
The technology helps identify weaknesses, highlight opportunities and determine whether a company deserves further consideration. While generative AI is certainly not without its issues, a 2025 study from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis found that workers using generative AI save up to 5.4% of their work hours — that’s around 2.2 hours a week for a full-time employee.
Generally, AI is useful for repetitive job functions without much differentiation. Think data entry, document verification, transcription and analyzing data patterns. While AI isn’t capable of predicting the future or guaranteeing returns, there’s some value in using it to identify opportunities hidden inside pages upon pages of earnings transcripts and analysis, then confirming those insights yourself.
One high-profile example of AI being used to perform such tasks is with Bloomberg Terminal, an all-in-one platform used to monitor financial markets and execute trades. The Terminal uses generative AI to filter large volumes of news in real time to assess sentiment toward listed companies.
However, AI shouldn’t replace human judgment — even Draper acknowledges that replicating decades of investing experience is difficult. Instead, AI is best used to filter out weaker opportunities and identify investments worth a closer look.
AI can also occasionally produce inaccurate information. According to an Aveni.ai blog post, 41% of finance-related queries can spit back an AI hallucination as a result. These types of errors can be incredibly costly, leading to $67.4 billion in losses for global businesses in 2024. Now imagine that mapped onto your portfolio.
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But AI can still dramatically reduce the time required to narrow thousands of possibilities to a manageable shortlist, allowing investors to spend more time evaluating opportunities and less time searching for them.
Just make sure to verify the output yourself rather than take it as gospel.
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How to get AI to do your market research
Today, interns at Draper’s firm use AI to help them complete that work faster and more effectively.
You can apply the same strategy.
Instead of asking, “What stock should I buy?” — a question so broad that even a human advisor would struggle to answer accurately — you could ask:
- Which companies are growing revenue fastest in the cybersecurity industry?
- Which dividend stocks have increased payouts for at least 10 consecutive years?
- Which healthcare companies have the highest profit margins among their peers?
- What risks do analysts frequently mention about a particular stock?
The right questions can make all the difference.
From AI summary to actionable investing
The sheer amount of market information out there is only growing. Public companies release quarterly earnings reports and regulatory filings, while finance media generate a constant stream of commentary. That’s where expert know-how comes into play.
Moby helps cut through the noise by delivering stock market research, educational resources and investment insights directly to subscribers.
In four years, and across almost 400 stock picks, their recommendations have beaten the S&P 500 by almost 12% on average. They also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Moby breaks down market trends and developments to help you become a smarter investor in just five minutes. If you’re just beginning to invest, Moby can help you take the guesswork out of choosing stocks and ETFs.
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Rather than just relying on headlines and social media posts, Moby’s AI-powered screening and up-to-the-minute market updates can be delivered straight to you. But ultimately, the choice to invest or not rests with you.
Consistency matters more than finding the perfect stock
One big mistake investors can make is waiting for the perfect opportunity to buy. Long-term wealth creation is often driven more by consistency than by a single, perfectly-timed investment.
Consider an investor who contributes $100 per month and earns an average annual return of 8%. After 30 years, they would have invested $36,000 of their own money but accumulated roughly $149,000 thanks to compound growth. That 8% might be conservative, too. Over the last five years, the S&P sported an annualized return of 12.58%.
Finding a winning stock can help accelerate returns, but consistently putting money to work is what typically builds wealth over the long run. Combining the two can give you a floor and a ceiling to build your home.
Put investing on autopilot
Acorns helps automate that process by investing spare change from everyday purchases into diversified ETF portfolios managed by experts at leading investment firms like Vanguard and BlackRock.
If you spend $3.25 on a coffee, for example, Acorns can round the purchase up to $4 and automatically invest the remaining 75 cents. Over time, those small contributions can accumulate into a meaningful investment portfolio without requiring investors to monitor the market constantly.
Combined with AI-powered research tools, automation can help investors spend less time worrying about when to invest and more time staying focused on their long-term goals. Sign up today and get a $20 bonus investment. Coupled with a targeted investment strategy, this can give you an investing baseline backed by safer stocks.
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Don’t forget the cash side of your portfolio
Draper’s focus is on identifying high-growth opportunities, but smart investors also need to consider where to keep their savings for a rainy day — or a sick day that turns into weeks or months, for that matter.
Whether you’re building an emergency fund, saving for a future purchase or waiting for an investment opportunity, idle cash can be eroded by inflation if your interest rate is too low. That’s when a high-yield account can help preserve your wealth.
Earn more while you wait
A high-yield account like a Wealthfront Cash Account can be a great place to grow your uninvested cash, offering both competitive interest rates and easy access to your money when you need it.
A Wealthfront Cash Account currently offers a base APY of 3.30% through program banks, and new clients can get an extra 0.75% boost during their first three months on up to $150,000, for a total variable APY of 4.05%.
That’s about ten times the national deposit savings rate, according to the FDIC’s April report.
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Additionally, Wealthfront is offering new clients who enable direct deposit ($1,000/mo minimum) to their Cash Account and open and fund a new investment account an additional 0.25% APY increase with no expiration date or balance limit, meaning your APY could be as high as 4.30%.
With no minimum balances or account fees, as well as 24/7 withdrawals and free domestic wire transfers, your funds remain accessible at all times. Plus, you get access to up to $8M FDIC Insurance eligibility through program banks.
AI can help find opportunities, but patience still wins
Draper’s firm is working toward a future where AI can help identify promising businesses at scale. But even the billionaire investor acknowledges that investing still involves human judgment, uncertainty and long-term thinking.
For everyday investors, AI may be a valuable tool for improving research, organizing information and uncovering opportunities more efficiently. But there’s something to be said for consistency, especially if you’re concerned about dramatic fluctuations in the market driven by war or geopolitical unrest.
Make sure your cash earns its keep
For money earmarked for short-term goals, certificates of deposit (CDs) can offer predictable returns without stock market risk. A CD locks in your investment for a given period of time before paying out a return. Generally speaking, they’re considered much safer than stock picking, but returns are correspondingly lower.
CD Valet helps you compare CD rates from banks and credit unions across the country, making it easier to find competitive yields without having to manually shop dozens of institutions.
CD Valet tracks over 40,000 verified rates from FDIC-insured banks and NCUA-insured credit unions nationwide. Unlike other websites, they show every publicly available rate, ensuring you have a comprehensive view of the market.
Plus, their CD rates are updated continuously, so you can shop, compare and open CDs with ease.
Whether you’re using AI to screen stocks, build watchlists or analyze industries, pairing those efforts with smart cash management can help strengthen your overall financial strategy.
The technology may be changing rapidly, but the fundamentals remain the same: Research thoroughly, invest consistently and give your money time to grow.
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Thomas Kent is a senior staff writer at Moneywise covering personal finance, markets and economic trends. He specializes in translating complex financial topics into clear, actionable insights for everyday readers.
