Daily Money - Using AI as a Retirement Vision Board

Each morning, I receive a “This Day in History” newsletter. In yesterday’s issue, something caught my eye. Twenty-nine years ago, IBM’s Deep Blue computer defeated world chess champion Garry Kasparov in the first of a six-game match.

The computer, which was capable of evaluating 200 million moves per second, ultimately lost the series. Nevertheless, its first game victory marked a historic moment for tech. I don’t care for chess, and I’m not a fan of technologies that aim to replicate human tasks. But I remember this news coming out when I was a teenager — and it left a lasting impression.

When the memory resurfaced, my thoughts jumped to AI. Something about the emerging technology doesn’t sit right with me — just like something about Deep Blue rubbed me the wrong way in 1996. And since AI is already being used for everything from picking stocks to swapping my face with Tom Hanks’ in Forrest Gump character, I wondered if anyone has applied AI to retirement planning.

And, of course, someone has.

Last fall, a behavioral economist began testing an AI tool that “invites users to imagine their ideal retirement and then generates a visual representation of it, replacing traditional fear-based financial warnings with personalized, positive visions.”

The AI tool, which is being trialed with 300,000 participants, gives me major Black Mirror vibes. When it comes to the utopian-dystopian future of technology, I err on the side of the latter. If I want to envision my ideal retirement, I’d rather daydream of fishing trips myself — not let an algorithm do it for me.

If you, too, prefer doing things the old-fashion (human) way, visit Money’s retirement section and paint your own retirement picture. It’s your life and your plan — you’re the best artist for that.

Brokerage giant Vanguard announced last week that it is dropping fees on 87 of its mutual funds and ETFs. According to the company, the move will save investors $350 million this year and amounts to "the largest fee cut in Vanguard history."

We’ve been covering gold a lot over the last year, and for good reason — historically, it’s one of the most tried-and-true investments, and in these weird times, tried-and-true is a good thing.*  If you’ve thought about adding gold to your portfolio, we suggest checking out our picks of the best online gold dealers — we’ve spent numerous hours researching what these companies have to offer, and think it’ll be of use in your own research. 

START INVESTING IN GOLD

*Past performance is not indicative of future results

The information provided in this email is for educational purposes only and is not intended as investment or financial advice.

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