We recently sat down with John O’Connell, founder of The Oasis Group, and the founders of Subatomic AI to unpack one of the most misunderstood topics in wealth management today: how AI agents help RIAs grow without adding headcount.
The conversation covered why most advisors are still stuck in “note-taker” mode, the compliance answer that actually satisfies CCOs, and the hidden AUM cost of every manual RMD request.
Below: the full webinar summary, plus 10 short clips breaking down the key takeaways. Skim, pick what matters to you, and share with your team.
Watch the Full Webinar
10 Key Takeaways
Each clip is 30–90 seconds. Click any card to watch.
Most advisors are barely scratching the surface
At a recent industry event, 200 advisors said they were using AI. The moment John asked who was using it beyond a note-taker, half the hands dropped. The real gap isn’t AI adoption — it’s AI imagination.
Stop thinking of AI as software — think of it as hiring
The reframe that changes how advisors use AI: you’re not buying a tool, you’re hiring a coworker. You train it, onboard it, check its work — just like a person.
The compliance question has a real answer
The most common CCO concern is that AI is a black box that can’t be audited. It doesn’t have to be. Every decision, every source, every step can be made fully visible — and that’s the bar modern RIAs should demand.
See it in action: the AI Proofreader
A concrete example of an AI coworker at work — enforcing brand voice, cutting review cycles, and coaching junior team members, all without pulling senior advisors into the weeds.
Training AI is no different from onboarding a new hire
Feed it your documents, explain your voice, check its work. The difference? This hire never leaves, never forgets, and keeps getting better the more you work with it.
The RMD example makes it concrete
A client calls to ask about their RMD. Today: 20–30 minutes across three systems and a calculator. With an AI coworker: seconds.
That 30 minutes is actually costing you AUM
The hidden cost of manual work isn’t payroll — it’s opportunity cost. Every minute an advisor spends processing an RMD is a minute not spent on rollovers, new accounts, and revenue-generating conversations.
AI doesn’t just cut costs — it breaks your growth ceiling
The real unlock isn’t efficiency. It’s that AI coworkers surface upsell opportunities, flag at-risk accounts, and let your team focus on the work that actually grows the firm.
Where to start: find the task nobody wants to do
Don’t try to boil the ocean. Find one painful, joyless task. Automate it. Show the team the win. Build from there. Momentum beats strategy.
Smaller RIAs have an unfair advantage right now
Firms under $20B can move faster than the giants. The window to leapfrog larger competitors on AI is open right now — but it won’t stay open forever.
See Subatomic in action
Curious how AI coworkers could fit at your firm? Let’s walk through it together — no slides, just a working demo on the problems you care about most.
See Subatomic in action →