Vestorly raises its game with artificial intelligence

Vestorly, a company whose platform allows advisers to sift through content to share with clients, is using the $4.1 million in fundraising it recently secured to implement artificial intelligence technology to its services. With this type of AI technology, algorithms will assist advisers in curating content relevant to their clients, helping advisers save six hours a week in work hours, said Justin Wisz, co-founder and chief executive of Vestorly. The company recently launched Vestorly Suggestions, an automated email that provides advisers with articles they may want to share with clients and prospects. It does this with algorithms that cross reference a message advisers want to send to a client with search engine results and what clients are interested in. “The way we position it is, marketing online can seem daunting, so here are a couple of recommendations to get a jumpstart,” Mr. Wisz said. The company is also introducing a mobile experience for smart phones and tablets in a few weeks that will find relevant news throughout the day for advisers to share. The recent fundraising, which included an investment from Sigma Prime Ventures, a technology venture capital firm in Boston, brings the company's total funding to $6.1 million. Jere Doyle, managing director at Sigma Prime, will join Vestorly as a board member. Pershing added Vestorly's services to its adviser offerings last summer. Mr. Wisz said he sees potential for AI in the financial services industry, but that it has a bad reputation. “It seems scary and out of control, and advisers want to control everything,” Mr. Wisz said. Unlike the type of artificial intelligence well-known in Hollywood hits, where computers can use logic with all of the information on the web and become self-reliant, Vestorly uses “artificial narrow intelligence,” which uses algorithms to find more relevant content quicker than an adviser could. The technology is already implemented in the industry. Robo-advisers, for example, are algorithm-driven platforms that rebalance portfolios based on modern portfolio theory, he said. “We don't think enough attention has been given outside of the robo-adviser realm," he said, noting the technology may see greater adoption ahead.