Our Thoughts On AI

“So what are your thoughts on AI?” This is a question we are hearing more and more from clients. There’s a palpable mix of excitement and apprehension around artificial intelligence right now. It reminds me of the dawn of the internet in the 90s or smartphones in the early 2000s.

At the time, these technologies seemed like science fiction, promising to reshape the world while simultaneously sparking fears of disruption. AI is that next paradigm shift, and its accelerating at a pace that feels overwhelming.

At Sequoia Advisor Group, we don’t see AI as a threat, but as an opportunity to elevate what we do best. It allows us to live out our core values—People First, Excellence in Everything, Details Matter—more effectively. By harnessing AI thoughtfully, we free up time for the human connections that define our relationships with you, while delivering sharper insights and faster service. In this post I want to share some of the reasons we’re optimistic, how we’re approaching AI, and what that means for you.

Why We’re Optimistic

History shows us that every major technological leap—from steam power and electricity to the internet and mobile computing—created far more opportunities and jobs than it destroyed. While scary in the beginning, nothing indicates that AI will be any different. In fact, one could argue that it’s poised to amplify human potential on an unprecedented scale.

At a recent conference titled, Winning the AI Race, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang captured this when he said, “AI is the greatest technology equalizer of all time. Everybody’s a programmer now. You used to need C++, Python…Now you just talk to the AI.” He went on to say, “AI will create more millionaires in the next five years than the internet did in twenty.”

While no one knows how the future will unfold, Huang’s statements highlight how AI is democratizing innovation and could lead to wealth creation across a broad spectrum of industries. Culturally we’re already seeing breakthroughs in productivity, logistics, healthcare, and finance that will continue to compound over time. And from our perspective, for the investors who own stakes in the innovators—thinkadvanced chipmakers, software platforms, and data centers—the benefits could be significant. As always, results will vary depending on market conditions and individual circumstances.

Our Guiding Philosophy on Technology

Our approach to AI is rooted in the same virtues that guide everything we do. One of our virtues is People First. As it relates to technology this means we adopt and utilize tools that enhance human relationships and client outcomes—while striving to never replace the empathy and trust at the heart of our work.

Another of Sequoia’s virtues is Excellence in Everything. We demand the tools we use go through rigorous testing, compliance reviews, and continuous improvement and monitoring to ensure they deliver reliable results.

Details Matter is another of our foundational virtues. We sweat the small stuff, like engineering AI prompts to deliver consistent results that exceed the outputs we were producing before implementing AI solutions.

A Special Place is the virtue that guides the type of environment we are working to curate for our clients as well as our staff. AI is helping us create an environment where our team can focus on meaningful conversations and creative problem-solving, rather than getting bogged down in routine tasks. As one of our advisors recently said, “AI handles the heavy lifting so I can focus on the heart-to-heart conversations that truly matter to our clients’ lives and legacies.”

Sequoia’s Early Adoption & Learning Curve

In late 2022, the week ChatGPT-3.5 went public, our team started experimenting immediately. We didn’t even wait for the dust to settle. We saw the potential and set out to learn exactly how this new technology could help us. We used the early iterations of AI to draft internal market summaries, double-check portfolio calculations, and learn how to write prompts that produce consistently accurate results.

It wasn’t long before we had one of our first breakthroughs — we built a proprietary AI agent for secure note-processing. After each meeting we recorded notes to capture the details of the meeting and any action items that need attention. The AI agent we built summarized our notes, structured action items into tasks and sent those tasks to the responsible team members, all within a couple minutes of making the recording. We used a numerical anonymization system to keep personal data private while allowing our staff to act swiftly on client needs. This was a revolutionary development that immediately created efficiencies that were previously impossible to even imagine.

At that point we knew we were on to something. From there, we embraced rapid “build–measure–learn” cycles. Each new release, like GPT-4, other AI platforms, or the latest API features, became a sandbox for us to test possibilities. This hands-on approach has ensured we continue to stay on the leading edge, learn fast, iterate thoughtfully, and continually integrate AI in ways that align with our commitment to excellence. Today we use multiple AI models for a variety of tasks that maximize our internal efficiency and increase the value of the work we do.

Where AI Is Embedded at Sequoia Today

Today, AI is woven into many of our workflows, always with a human touch to ensure we continually serve you better. Here’s how it’s making a difference:

• Investment Research Agents: These tools screen thousands of ETFs and stocks against our strict quality and risk metrics, uncovering niche or emerging strategies. The benefit? These tools may help identify a broader range of investment options that can be evaluated in light of our client’s individual goals and risk tolerance.

• Portfolio Diagnostics: AI runs scenario tests for inflation shocks, identifies tax-loss harvesting opportunities, and optimizes withdrawal sequences. And while results are never guaranteed, these tools enable more confident, data-backed adjustments to financial plans and support informed decision making.

• Meeting-Note Automation: After our client meetings, AI turns hour- long discussions into action checklists and CRM updates in minutes.The result is faster follow-ups, fewer oversights, and more time for us to focus on our client’s evolving needs.

• Content Drafting & Compliance Pre-Checks: We’ve built a variety of AI tools to edit our newsletter articles and educational pieces. While we write the pieces, these tools are invaluable as they flag any wording that might not align with compliance guidelines. This allows us to reduce compliance bottlenecks and produce content with fewer revisions.

In every case, a human is still working at the front and backend to ensure the product meets our standards. AI augments our expertise, letting us deliver the personalized, holistic guidance our clients expect—from financial planning and investment management to estate and tax strategies.

Safeguards: Privacy, Security & Regulation

Of course, with great power comes great responsibility. The majority of our internal use cases do not involve clients or personal information. They are related to market and portfolio research, analysis and construction, or compliance pre-checks for articles like this one. The one exception is meeting notes. We now use an enterprise level solution that has been approved by our broker dealer ensuring no raw, sensitive information—like Social Security numbers, account details, or medical data—ever touches AI servers.

We take an approach of using AI to augment rather than fully automate. This helps ensure empathy, judgment, and the nuanced understanding of our client’s priorities remain uniquely human. As we alluded to earlier, AI is a tool, not a replacement.

What’s Next on Our AI Road Map

Looking ahead, we’re committed to continuous R&D as models evolve. AI isn’t great at everything, but when it comes to document and data analysis it is often faster and more accurate than a human. Beyond financial plans, portfolio analysis and construction, we see opportunities for AI to increase efficiency in estate and tax strategies.AI empowers us to deliver the timeless virtues you value—clarity, responsiveness, and sophisticated planning—at digital-age speed and scale. It’s all in service of helping our clients craft a life of gratitude and impact. What AI-powered service would make your financial life easier?

Reach out; we’re here to listen and innovate together. At Sequoia, we believe AI presents both opportunities and risks, and we’re committed to helping you navigate this evolving landscape.

Disclosures: Stock investing includes risks, including fluctuating prices and loss of principal. ETFs trade like stocks, are subject to investment risk, fluctuate in market value, and may trade at prices above or below the ETF's net asset value (NAV). Upon redemption, the value of fund shares may be worth more or less than their original cost. ETFs carry additional risks such as not being diversified, possible trading halts, and index tracking errors.

There is no guarantee that a diversified portfolio will enhance overall returns or outperform a non-diversified portfolio. Diversification does not protect against market risk.

IMPORTANT: The projections or other information generated regarding the likelihood of various investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature, do not reflect actual investment results and are not guarantees of future results. These figures may exclude commissions, sales charges or fees which, if included would have had a negative effect on the annual returns. Investing is subject to risk which may involve loss of principal. No strategy assures success or protects against loss.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results.