Why we're watching this: OpenAI is following the same vertical playbook it used in health - acquire a specialist team, build a dedicated product, and use ChatGPT's scale to distribute it instantly. Finance is the second major vertical in under a year. The pattern is accelerating.
Key Takeaways
- ChatGPT now connects to over 12,000 financial institutions via Plaid, including Chase, Fidelity, Schwab, Robinhood, American Express, and Capital One
- The feature was built with the Hiro team, a personal finance startup OpenAI acquired in April, backed by Ribbit and General Catalyst
- Currently in preview for Pro subscribers in the US, with Plus expansion planned after feedback; Intuit integration coming to enable tax and credit analysis
OpenAI has launched personal finance tools inside ChatGPT, allowing Pro subscribers in the US to connect bank accounts, investment portfolios, and credit cards through Plaid and ask the model questions ranging from spending analysis to long-term financial planning.
The launch comes roughly one month after OpenAI acquired the team behind personal finance startup Hiro. Users can connect accounts at over 12,000 financial institutions, after which ChatGPT surfaces a dashboard covering portfolio performance, spending patterns, subscriptions, and upcoming payments.
Questions like “Has my spending changed recently?” or “Help me build a plan to buy a house in five years” are now answered with actual account data rather than generic advice.
OpenAI plans to add Intuit support soon, which would extend the tool’s capabilities to tax impact analysis – such as calculating the consequences of a stock sale – and credit card approval likelihood.
“More than 200 million users already ask financial questions to ChatGPT every month.” – OpenAI
The company noted that GPT-5.5‘s stronger contextual reasoning makes it better suited to personal finance questions than earlier models. OpenAI said it worked with finance experts to build a benchmark specifically for this use case.
Users can remove account connections at any time via Settings. Disconnected data is purged from ChatGPT within 30 days. Financial memories can also be viewed and deleted directly from the Finances page.
OpenAI’s move into finance follows the same pattern it used in healthcare: identify a high-value vertical where users already bring sensitive questions, acquire a specialist team, and ship a dedicated product. Perplexity launched its own professional finance product in early May, targeting institutional users with 35 analyst workflows and source-traceable data from providers including Morningstar and PitchBook. The race to own high-stakes verticals is on.
The feature is available on ChatGPT web and iOS for Pro subscribers. OpenAI said it intends to expand to Plus users after incorporating early feedback, suggesting this is a controlled rollout designed to validate the product before broader distribution.
Whether a general purpose chatbot with bank account access can displace dedicated financial tools, or whether trust and liability concerns slow adoption is the question this launch will answer over the next several months, a dynamic being tracked by Relve, an AI tools and trends intelligence platform.
