Human + Machine: How AI Is Reshaping Financial Planning

Artificial intelligence (AI) holds enormous promise for financial planning, but it also brings profound change and new responsibility. CFP Board is committed to guiding CFP® professionals through the digital jungle, harnessing technology’s potential and fostering a culture of responsible use. On September 30, 2025, three experts from CFP Board’s AI Working Group shared insights in the free webinar Charting the Future: How AI Is Shaping Financial Planning. Over the course of an hour, the panel explored AI through a practical lens, discussed current and emerging use cases, shared implementation lessons, and reflected on how the financial planner’s role is evolving alongside technology.

The discussion brought together leading voices in AI and financial planning: Brooke Juniper, CFA®, CAIA® & CEO of Sage; Andrew Altfest, MBA, CFP® and President of Altfest Personal Wealth Management & CEO of FP Alpha; and Apoorv Saxena, Founder & CEO of Obin.AI. CFP Board COO K. Dane Snowden, moderated the session and set an optimistic tone: “AI is already transforming how we live and work, including how CFP® professionals deliver value to clients,” he said to nearly 1,500 attendees, “The future is not human versus machine. It’s human plus machine.”

Panelists agreed that AI’s ability to take on routine tasks will give planners more time to focus on client relationships. “AI is going to replace a large part of what we do, and ultimately that’s a good thing because it’s going to allow us to do a ton more for our clients,” said Altfest. “It’s going to take tasks off our plate like scanning tax returns and modeling estate scenarios, but it’s not going to replace the trusted role that we play. In fact, I think it’s going to free us up to do what only humans can do, which is coach, empathize and guide clients through deeply personal decisions.”

Juniper emphasized that AI can enhance trust and confidence in the profession. “I would want an advisor that has this objective, always-on engine that go[es] through lots of different scenarios — basically the most powerful support team on tap to look at the various dimensions of my financial picture,” she said.

Saxena, who previously led AI implementation at JP Morgan Chase, shared lessons from testing AI tools with clients, underscoring the importance of human interaction. “We deployed AI to generative portfolio scenarios, and the clients loved…the efficiency of how quickly we could model different scenarios, but they didn’t trust the output until an advisor explained to them what it meant for their lives,” he said. “[AI] can do the analysis, it can give you the data points, it can give you the probabilities, but it cannot make the decision feel right to you, and this is where the planners are the real human touch that we need.”

The message was clear: It’s not about AI replacing planners. It’s about how AI can empower them. “Clients now expect two things at once: high-touch human service and seamless digital experiences,” Snowden said. Incorporating that balance is the challenge for the modern CFP® professional. Through the work of its AI Working Group, and resources like the Generative AI Ethics Guide, CFP Board continues to guide financial planners through this evolving landscape, helping them navigate the digital jungle with confidence and clarity.

To hear the full discussion, watch the recording of Charting the Future: How AI Is Shaping Financial Planning.